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25 Parent Involvement Activities For Elementary Schools

November 6, 2022 //  by  Brittany Collens

Parent involvement has a direct correlation to how successful and enjoyable a child’s experience is with the school. Sometimes kids may come home with questions, concerns, or enthusiasm from class and for that to be acknowledged and worked through, is incredibly important! Without a push from the school to get the parents involved, it is easy for them to get tied down with their own work. Creating engaging content for them is just as important so the school can develop impactful relationships. Check out these 25 parent involvement activities.

1. Welcome In Different Languages 

parent involvement assignments

The first time parents come into the classroom they should feel welcome. Expressing welcome in different languages based on the backgrounds of the families is a great way to do this. You can do it to specifically suit your children’s backgrounds or other common languages around the world. 

Learn More: Gadoe.org

2. Open House Tour

parent involvement assignments

Open houses are the most popular events of the year for teachers. It is a great chance for the parents to come into the school and meet the person educating their children. They also get a chance to see the environment that their child will be in. 

3. Parent Curriculum 

parent involvement assignments

Just like a child will have their curriculum for the year, teachers should hand out a parent version. This should align with what the kids are doing so they are involved in their children’s education. 

4. Field Trips With Parents

parent involvement assignments

At the beginning of the year set the field trip calendar with open slots next to each one. Have parents sign up for the field trip that they want to volunteer for. This is a great bonding activity for the kids and their parents and having rotating adults also helps kids build relationships with other parents. 

5. Fair Night

parent involvement assignments

In addition to an open house, host a charity fair night for the kids and their parents to attend. There should be games and different stations where they can do activities together. This can have an educational component to it or it can be strictly good fun and games. 

6. Work Together Assignments 

Sometimes sending home assignments that are both for the kids and the parents is a great idea. The parents can be involved in knowing what the kids are learning whilst helping them learn. This offers a different perspective from a teacher’s and is important for the kids. 

7. Parent Progress Reports 

parent involvement assignments

Set goals for the kids and parents at the beginning of the year. Teachers can send home progress reports that allow the parents to ask questions and read comments on how they can continue to get more involved. This keeps things organized and doesn’t save all discussions for teacher meetings. 

8. My Family Tree

parent involvement assignments

A great activity for kids and parents to do together is to make a family tree. This helps the teacher understand a little more about the child’s background. It also helps the child understand their background. This is a great educational experience for parents and kids to bond. 

9. Extracurricular Volunteers

parent involvement assignments

Sports and art need help when teachers cannot fill these positions. This is a great way for parents to get involved and help coach or direct certain music and arts programs. There is always plenty of space and opportunity for parents to get involved outside of academics! 

10.  Questions of the Month

parent involvement assignments

Parents may have questions, but sometimes forget to email them in or reach out to teachers. Sending out an email to remind them to submit their questions monthly is a great way to stay in contact throughout the year and ensure everyone is on the same page. 

11. Parent Show and Tell

parent involvement assignments

Show and Tell has always been a favorite activity among the little ones, but having parents come in and do their own presentation is always interesting. Turn this into a bonding activity by having both parent and child present something together. 

12. What’s Your Job?

parent involvement assignments

Not every parent has to sign up for this one, but having parents volunteer to come in and talk about what they do is cool. The question of, “What do you want to be when you grow up?” is always a big one! 

13.  Study Groups

Parents that have a little more time can be in charge of hosting study groups. Some kids may find a particular topic a little more challenging. Teachers can give parents resources and materials to host a study group where kids can sign up and get in extra hours.  

14. Follow Up Report Cards

parent involvement assignments

Leave a comment section for parents to sign off and ask questions about their kid’s report cards. It doesn’t matter whether it’s fantastic or needs improvement. Parents should be responsive to this and follow up with a meeting.

Learn More: Education World

15.  Parent Webpage

parent involvement assignments

Papers and folders sent home may get lost. A parent webpage is the easiest way for them to stay on top of their kid’s schedules and assignments. It’s also a great spot for resources. Leave a section with the teacher’s contact information. 

16. Reference List For Parents 

parent involvement assignments

When the parents get a curriculum at the beginning of the year, they should also get a reference list. These can be things that kids need for each activity, field trip, or event during the year. It helps parents stay on track for the year and keep their kids organized. 

17. Student Newsletter for Parents 

parent involvement assignments

Reading and writing are core skills learned in elementary. Have your kids create a student newsletter to keep their parents up to date with news and content being covered in class. 

18. Join The School Board

Parents should always have a say in how their children are taught and be involved in their environment. That’s why schools have PTAs or PTOs for parents to get involved in. 

Learn More: Michigan.Gov

19. Board Meetings

parent involvement assignments

If you can’t commit to being on the PTA/PTO, that is OK. It is their job to host open board meetings where parents can voice their ideas and concerns. That is why the board then becomes a representative of the collective group. 

20. Homework Sticker Checks

parent involvement assignments

Parents should get sent home with parent sticker sheets so that when they check homework assignments, they can give their kids a sticker. This doesn’t have to be for every assignment, but it lets the teacher know that they are checking in from time to time. 

21. Single Parent Resources

parent involvement assignments

Not every parent has someone to help them out. Teachers can ensure that a community still supports a child by providing clear resources for single parents. Single parents may have a harder time volunteering which is why this is important to talk about early on.

22. Parents Make Friends Too

parent involvement assignments

The buddy system is a great idea that’s been around forever. Making the parents find a buddy is a great way of holding them accountable. Life gets crazy and reaching out to another kid’s parent is an easy way to get questions answered quickly.

23.  Address Book For Open House

At the open house at the beginning of the year, there should be an address or contact book. Have parents fill out their emails, phone numbers, and addresses upon arriving so it is easy for the teacher to reach out if need be. Even if the school already does this, it’s great to confirm. 

24. Parent Luncheon

parent involvement assignments

Not every day do you get to have lunch with your kids. Select a date for parents to go through the lunch lines with their kids. Have them bring a lunch or eat at school. This gives them an up-close view of your kid’s day-to-day. 

25. Kids Go To Work

parent involvement assignments

Instead of having the parent come in and talk about their job, let the kids pick one day out of the year when they get to go to work with a parent and come back with a report on what they learned. 

Does Parent Involvement Really Help Students? Here’s What the Research Says

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Parental involvement has been a top priority for school leaders for decades, and research shows that it can make a major difference in student outcomes.

But a parents’ rights movement that has captured headlines over the past few years and become a major political force has painted a particular picture of what parents’ involvement in their children’s education looks like.

Policies that have passed in a number of individual school districts, states, and the U.S. House have spelled out parents’ rights to inspect curriculum materials and withdraw their children from lessons they deem objectionable; restricted teaching about race, gender identity, and sexuality; and resulted in the removal of books from school libraries, including many with LGBTQ+ characters and protagonists of color.

The parents’ rights movement has been divisive and attracted the ire of some teachers who feel censored. But it has also opened up the conversation around parent involvement in school, said Vito Borrello, executive director of the National Association for Family, School, and Community Engagement.

And that’s a good thing, he said.

“The parents’ rights bills in and of themselves, I wouldn’t suggest are entirely focused on best practice family engagement,” said Borrello, whose group works to advance effective family, school, and community engagement policies and practices. “However, what the parents’ rights bills have done is elevated the important role that parents have in their child’s education.”

For decades, research from around the world has shown that parents’ involvement in and engagement with their child’s education—including through parent-teacher conferences, parent-teacher organizations, school events, and at-home discussions about school—can lead to higher student achievement and better social-emotional outcomes.

Here are five takeaways from the research.

1. Studies show more parental involvement leads to improved academic outcomes

When parents are involved in their children’s schooling, students show higher academic achievement, school engagement, and motivation, according to a 2019 American Psychological Association review of 448 independent studies on parent involvement.

A 2005 study from researchers at the Johns Hopkins University Center on School, Family and Community Partnerships , for example, showed that school practices encouraging families to support their child’s math learning at home led to higher percentages of students scoring at or above proficiency on standardized math tests.

And research shows that parent involvement with reading activities has a positive impact on reading achievement, language comprehension, and expressive language skills, as well as students’ interest in reading, attitudes toward reading, and level of attention in the classroom, according to a research summary by the National Literacy Trust.

“When parents become involved at school by, for example, attending events such as open houses or volunteering in the classroom, they build social networks that can provide useful information, connections to school personnel (e.g., teachers), or strategies for enhancing children’s achievement,” the APA research review said. “In turn, parents with heightened social capital are better equipped to support their children in succeeding in school as they are able to call on resources (e.g., asking a teacher to spend extra time helping their children) and utilize information they have gathered (e.g., knowing when and how their children should complete their homework).”

Protesters hold signs at a Moms for Liberty rally at the state Capitol in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania on October 9, 2021. About 100 people attended the rally to protest mask and vaccine mandates.

2. Parent involvement changes social-emotional outcomes, too

The APA study showed that not only does parental involvement lead to improved academic outcomes, but it also has a positive impact on students’ social and emotional skills and decreases instances of delinquency.

That finding also applies internationally.

A 2014 International Education Studies report on parental involvement among 9th and 10th graders in Jordan showed that parental involvement had a positive impact on students’ emotional engagement in school. That means students with more involved parents are more likely to have fun, enjoy school, have high self-esteem, and perceive school as a satisfying experience.

And when parents visit their children’s school, that contributes to a sense of safety among the students, ultimately improving school engagement, the study said. Although conducted in Jordan, the study provides insight into how parental involvement affects students’ social-emotional development in other countries, including the United States.

Parent involvement also gives teachers the tools to better support their students, Borrello said.

“When teachers understand what their students are going through personally and at home and any challenges they may have, then that improves their teaching,” he said. “They’re able to support their student in ways they wouldn’t be able to otherwise.”

Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy, center, with Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., left, and Rep. Julia Letlow, R-La., speaks about proposed legislation dubbed the "Parents Bill of Rights," Wednesday, March 1, 2023, on Capitol Hill in Washington.

3. Not all parental involvement is created equal

Different levels and types of parent involvement led to varying outcomes for students, according to the American Psychological Association study.

For example, school-based involvement, such as participation in parent-teacher conferences, open houses, and other school events, had a positive impact on academics in preschool, middle school, and high school, but the size of the impact was much lower in high school than in preschool. That may be because parents have fewer opportunities to be involved in the high school environment than in younger students’ classrooms where parents might volunteer.

At-home discussions and encouragement surrounding school also have a positive impact on students’ academic achievement at all developmental stages, with that type of parent involvement being most effective for high schoolers, according to the study. Reading with children and taking them to the library have a positive impact as well.

But one common form of parental involvement, helping kids with their homework, was shown to have little impact on students’ academic achievement.

In fact, homework help had a small negative impact on student achievement, but positive impacts on student motivation and engagement in school, according to the APA study.

The research shows the value of encouraging parents to be involved in their student’s learning at home, and not just attending school events, Borrello said.

“In the past, schools either had an event that wasn’t connected to learning or only measured the engagement of a family based on how often they came to the school,” he said. “What families are doing to create an environment of learning and supporting learning at home, is probably even more important than how many times they’re coming to school.”

4. Results of parent involvement don’t discriminate based on race or socioeconomics

Research has shown a consensus that family and parent involvement in schools leads to better outcomes regardless of a family’s ethnic background or socioeconomic status.

Parent involvement has led to higher academic outcomes both for children from low and higher socioeconomic status families.

When comparing the impact of parent involvement on students of different races and ethnicities, the APA found that school-based involvement had a positive impact on academics among Black, Asian, white, and Hispanic children, with a stronger impact on Black and white families than families from other demographics. The finding also extended internationally, with similar effects on children outside of the United States.

5. Schools can encourage parent involvement in person and at home

Parent involvement doesn’t have to end with parent-teacher conferences. There are many ways for schools to encourage parents to be more involved both in school and at home, Borrello said.

The best way to start, he said, is by creating a school culture that is welcoming to families.

“That starts with the principal, and that starts with school leadership that is welcoming to families, from how they’re engaging parents in the classroom to what policies they have in schools to welcome families,” Borrello said.

Parent gathering spaces or rooms in school buildings, scheduled parent engagement meetings and office hours, and at-school events held outside of the school day are all good places to start, Borrello said. From there, schools can work to include parents in more decision-making, give parents resources to support learning at home, and equip teachers with the tools to engage and connect with parents.

“If the school is not welcoming and families don’t feel welcome at the school, then you’re not going to get them to come to school no matter what you do,” Borrello said. “Then it’s really thinking about who you’re creating those relationships with families so that they can be heard.”

Coverage of strategies for advancing the opportunities for students most in need, including those from low-income families and communities, is supported by a grant from the Walton Family Foundation, at www.waltonk12.org . Education Week retains sole editorial control over the content of this coverage. A version of this article appeared in the August 16, 2023 edition of Education Week as Does Parent Involvement Really Help Students? 5 Key Takeaways Based on The Research

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Ana Pasarella, the director of family and community engagement for Alvin ISD, oversees an activity as Micaela Leon, 3, a student in Alvin ISD’s READy Program, draws on a piece of paper on Alvin ISD’s STEM bus in Manvel, Texas, on Dec. 8, 2023.

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Parenting For Brain

The Importance of Parental Involvement in Education

Pamela Li

Posted on Last updated: Oct 27, 2023

  • What is parental involvement
  • Difference between involvement and engagement
  • How does it influence a child’s behavior
  • When is it not good for kids
  • Quantity vs quality
  • Controlling
  • Autonomous supportive

In recent years, parent involvement has been widely accepted as the key to improving children’s academic performance and expected in good parenting. Teachers often engage parents through the school curriculum. It is common to see “parents’ help needed” in school projects.

However, not all research comes to the same conclusion.

Let’s find out if parental involvement is the magic bullet in improving students’ performance and closing the achievement gap.

What is Parental Involvement

Parent involvement refers to the collaboration between the parents and the school to improve children’s education experience and academic performance. Countless studies have found that the involvement of parents in education is vital to a child’s success in school.

Parents can become involved in school work in many ways.

Parent involvement in schools can include discussions after school, helping with homework assignments, engaging in extracurricular activities, keeping abreast of academic progress, imparting parental values, participating in parent meetings, attending school activities, and volunteering in the classroom. ​1​

Difference Between Parental Involvement And Engagement

In the past, parent involvement was the focus of building successful partnerships between parents and teachers. Family involvement is an extended form of parent involvement.

The switch from emphasis on parent involvement to family engagement started when the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 was reauthorized as the No Child Left Behind Act in 2002.

The new terminology emphasizes the importance of engagement from the entire family, such as grandparents, aunts, uncles, and even the community, to form school, family, and community partnerships.

In addition to including other family members, reframing parent involvement to family engagement redefines how family members are more active in kids’ education. They are not just passively being present anymore. ​2​

The National Association for the Education of Young Children NAEYC defines parent involvement and family engagement. ​3​

  • create and sustain student learning activities at home to enhance the child’s strength
  • family and school collaborate through effective communication ​4​
  • ongoing parental participation to build genuine relationships and shared responsibility
  • engage families and community by building upon interests and skills ​5​

Self-motivated learner

How To Motivate Kids

mom and boy greet teacher in the classroom in front of the blackboard parental involvement meaning

How does parental involvement influence a child’s behavior

A meta-analysis of 66 studies shows that the most accurate predictors of student success are not family income or social status but the extent to which parents and teachers work together to facilitate the child’s education. ​6​

Extensive research shows that family-school partnerships in education matter because they correlate with better academic success in children​7​. In elementary school, students with involved parents attend school regularly​8​, have better social skills​9​ , and have improved classroom behavior . ​7​

Research has also shown that students earn higher grades when parental support enhances their self-efficacy and self-esteem and when they feel that their parents pay attention and care about their education . ​8​

When Is Parent Involvement Not Good For Kids

According to growing research, parents’ involvement in their children’s academic life positively affects their performance.

However, not all research results are consistent. ​9​ Some studies find mixed or contradictory conclusions regarding parental involvement.

Most studies measured the quantity or frequency of parental involvement without considering the student’s prior achievement, family background, or the quality of parental involvement. ​10​

Quantity vs. Quality In Parent Involvement

Not every type of parent involvement is associated with good outcomes. The effects of parental involvement in education are not always positive.

When parents; involvement is controlling, the student outcomes tend to be negative.

As one of the closest points of convergence between school and home, homework is where parents can be most involved. ​11​

By distinguishing the quantity and quality of parental homework involvement, some studies show different conclusions.

For example, when parents are negative or controlling, their frequent involvement decreases the child’s achievement. However, homework help that is perceived as supportive positively affects academic performance. ​12​

Controlling Parent Involvement

Controlling parents feel they need tight control over their children to ensure their success. They pressure their children to achieve and solve problems for them without being asked to. They often take the parental perspective and ignore the child’s wishes.

One example of controlling parental involvement is homework supervision.

Researchers define controlling involvement as excessive pressure on the child to complete assignments , check if the child has completed their homework , get involved in homework without being asked , and punish the child if homework is not complete . ​13​

Controlling parent behavior decreases a child’s intrinsic motivation. Such engagement undermines children’s learning motivation and the child’s sense of personal value and responsibility. ​14​

Parental pressure also correlates with worse test scores. ​15​

The more controlling the parent and behavior, the worse the child performs in school. ​16​

Examples of controlling parent involvement include: ​17​

  • Parents work with their children to complete homework unrequested
  • Check on homework and force completion
  • Direct instructions that undermine intrinsic motivation
  • Give privileges because of good grades
  • Limit privileges because of poor grades
  • Demand student work or chores at home
  • Limit time watching TV or video games
  • Limit time out with friends on school nights

Autonomous Supportive Parent Involvement

Parents’ involvement is helpful when their action shows that they value their child’s education and are not trying to be controlling .

A child who receives autonomous support from an involved parent tends to perform better academically. These parents allow their children to initiate learning instead of pushing them to do so.

Autonomous supportive parents focus on the learning , not the grades. They assist and only engage as determined by their kids. They are sensitive to their children’s needs and are available to help with homework when requested. ​13​

Children with autonomous support are in control of their own activities. They are intrinsically motivated to learn and perform better academically. ​18​

Other examples of autonomous support parent involvement ideas include:

  • attend parent-teacher conferences
  • attend school events in which the student participates
  • volunteer at the school
  • encourage parent participation in activities the student is interested in

Need Help Motivating Kids?

Online course How To Motivate Kids is a great place to start.

Final Thoughts on Parent Involvement in Education

When schools encourage parents to get involved, it is essential to guide parents support their kids positively. Autonomous supportive parents are not only good for the child’s academic success, but they also positively impact the child’s physical and mental well-being.

When schools engage parents in the learning process, children tend to have more health-promoting behaviors, such as physical activity. Connectedness to family is also associated with fewer reported suicidal ideation in children. Working together, schools and parents can become invaluable support networks for children and adolescents. ​19​

  • 1. Gonzalez-DeHass AR, Willems PP, Holbein MFD. Examining the Relationship Between Parental Involvement and Student Motivation. Educ Psychol Rev . Published online June 2005:99-123. doi: 10.1007/s10648-005-3949-7
  • 2. Baker TL, Wise J, Kelley G, Skiba RJ. Identifying Barriers: Creating Solutions to Improve Family Engagement. School Community Journal . 2016;26(2):161-184.
  • 3. Halgunseth L, Peterson DRS, Moodie S. Family engagement, diverse families, and early childhood programs: An integrated review of the literature. Washington, DC: The National Association for the Education of Young Children. Published 2009. https://www.researchconnections.org/files/meetings/ccprc/2009/Halgunseth.pdf
  • 4. Ferlazzo L. Involvement or Engagement? Educational Leadership . 2011;68(8):10-14.
  • 5. Evans MP. Educating preservice teachers for family, school, and community engagement. Teaching Education . Published online June 2013:123-133. doi: 10.1080/10476210.2013.786897
  • 6. Henderson AT, Berla N. A New Generation of Evidence: The Family Is Critical to Student Achievement . ERIC; 1994.
  • 7. El Nokali NE, Bachman HJ, Votruba-Drzal E. Parent Involvement and Children’s Academic and Social Development in Elementary School. Child Development . Published online May 13, 2010:988-1005. doi: 10.1111/j.1467-8624.2010.01447.x
  • 8. Al-Alwan AF. Modeling the Relations among Parental Involvement, School Engagement and Academic Performance of High School Students. IES . Published online March 25, 2014. doi: 10.5539/ies.v7n4p47
  • 9. Cooper H, Lindsay JJ, Nye B. Homework in the Home: How Student, Family, and Parenting-Style Differences Relate to the Homework Process. Contemporary Educational Psychology . Published online October 2000:464-487. doi: 10.1006/ceps.1999.1036
  • 10. McLoyd VC. Socioeconomic disadvantage and child development. American Psychologist . Published online February 1998:185-204. doi: 10.1037/0003-066x.53.2.185
  • 11. Moroni S, Dumont H, Trautwein U, Niggli A, Baeriswyl F. The Need to Distinguish Between Quantity and Quality in Research on Parental Involvement: The Example of Parental Help With Homework. The Journal of Educational Research . Published online July 15, 2015:417-431. doi: 10.1080/00220671.2014.901283
  • 12. Pomerantz EM, Wang Q, Ng FFY. Mothers’ Affect in the Homework Context: The Importance of Staying Positive. Developmental Psychology . Published online 2005:414-427. doi: 10.1037/0012-1649.41.2.414
  • 13. Karbach J, Gottschling J, Spengler M, Hegewald K, Spinath FM. Parental involvement and general cognitive ability as predictors of domain-specific academic achievement in early adolescence. Learning and Instruction . Published online February 2013:43-51. doi: 10.1016/j.learninstruc.2012.09.004
  • 14. Rogers MA, Theule J, Ryan BA, Adams GR, Keating L. Parental Involvement and Children’s School Achievement. Canadian Journal of School Psychology . Published online March 2009:34-57. doi: 10.1177/0829573508328445
  • 15. Pomerantz EM, Eaton MM. Maternal intrusive support in the academic context: Transactional socialization processes. Developmental Psychology . Published online 2001:174-186. doi: 10.1037/0012-1649.37.2.174
  • 16. Fei-Yin Ng F, Kenney-Benson GA, Pomerantz EM. Children’s Achievement Moderates the Effects of Mothers’ Use of Control and Autonomy Support. Child Development . Published online May 2004:764-780. doi: 10.1111/j.1467-8624.2004.00705.x
  • 19. Carter M, McGee R, Taylor B, Williams S. Health outcomes in adolescence: Associations with family, friends and school engagement. Journal of Adolescence . Published online February 2007:51-62. doi: 10.1016/j.adolescence.2005.04.002

* All information on parentingforbrain.com is for educational purposes only. Parenting For Brain does not provide medical advice. If you suspect medical problems or need professional advice, please consult a physician. *

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  • Reimagining 6 Classic Parent Engagement Strategies, from Birth through High School

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You may also like, why parent engagement outshines involvement, involvement: creating space for parents to participate, engagement: elevating parents from participants to partners, 6 classic parent engagement strategies, reimagined, the parent-teacher conference, the family night on campus, the take-home folder, the school newsletter (or website), the school front office, the absence of family engagement at middle and high schools, continuing the evolution of parent engagement.

It’s no secret that the COVID-19 pandemic flipped the education world upside down when it shuttered schools and learning institutions across the country in 2020. Even now in this semi-normal state we’ve returned to, there’s a palpable difference in what students, educators, and families are all experiencing. From an ongoing teacher shortage across multiple states to slow academic recovery , these challenges can feel intimidating for educators to navigate.

But even here, there are silver linings and positive trends that this collective experience actually catalyzed — especially trends in family engagement strategies that were shifting even before the pandemic struck.

And that’s a good thing!

As ParentPowered weathered the storm alongside our partners in K-12 school districts, early learning programs, and community-based organizations, we witnessed educators’ creative and powerful shifts to classic parent engagement strategies that ultimately better serve these partnerships today.

We compiled a list of the most common ways schools and districts promote positive parent engagement — and how your team, too, can reimagine them for the benefit of the entire learning community!

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As educators continue to learn about effective family-school partnership examples and approaches, it is important to understand how engagement differs from involvement , and why this difference matters.

Research has long shown that parental involvement in student learning has positive correlations with a wide variety of educational outcomes, especially academic success. Strategies that emphasize parent involvement often center around activities happening on campus — which makes sense on the surface. Students are spending a lot of time learning in classrooms, on the playground, or in after-school activities that typically happen on school grounds. So, naturally, schools seek to bring parents into these spaces as a means to welcome them into the learning environment and encourage their engagement in schools.

That’s part of the challenge.

For starters, several barriers can affect a parents’ capacity to participate in school-centered events. For instance, to attend an on-site event like a family workshop, some families might have to pay for a sitter, take time off work, or travel from work to make it. Yes, there are parents who can afford these incremental costs or have flexibility in their schedule — but many families likely cannot navigate these barriers. 

Mature Caucasian woman speaking on mobile phone at a coffee shop.

Another challenge with family involvement is that, sometimes, educators can hold the same expectations for what involvement looks like for all families, regardless of each family’ unique background, circumstances, or past experiences with school. But in reality, every parent comes to a school community with their own perspective, hopes, fears, and dreams for their child’s learning. Each of these experiences can affect how and when a parent believes they can or should participate. This is just one of several common assumptions about family engagement in education that educators are detangling and reimagining as they shift to supporting families with greater success.

These challenges don’t necessarily negate the value of parent involvement in education — any amount of participation in their child’s learning imparts benefits for students and schools! But what’s even more impactful is equitable family engagement . When educators incorporate families as essential players on the education team, they set up each child to thrive, be it in academics, social-emotional learning , or even physical health.

As an example, if involvement looks like inviting parents to attend Back-to-School Night on campus, then engagement takes this activity to the next level by going virtual for families who cannot attend in person. This ensures the entire community can access the valuable information shared during the event. Better still, a school might recruit parents to help facilitate special workshops or learning stations during Back-to-School Night alongside teachers and school staff.

Dr. Karen Mapp of the Harvard Graduate School of Education shaped her own research about effective family engagement into a framework for educators to follow as they strategies building strong relationships with their families. According to the Dual Capacity-Building Framework , the most effective examples of family engagement in schools are:

  • Relational, built on mutual trust
  • Directly linked to learning and development
  • Strengths-based, focusing on assets over gaps
  • Culturally responsive and respectful
  • Interactive and collaborative

When educators invest time and energy into reimagining their family engagement methods, they reap a bounty that nourishes everything from increased graduation rates to higher academic achievement to improved student mental health. The positive impact of family-school partnerships is well worth it!

“Involved par­ents take part in the activ­i­ties already deter­mined by the school. Engaged par­ents take a step fur­ther, often becom­ing part of the school’s deci­sion-mak­ing process.” Annie Casey Foundation

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With this clear understanding of why family and community engagement in schools matters — let’s take these six classic parental engagement strategies used by many learning organizations. Discover how your colleagues around the country are reimagining them in whole new ways.

Looking for a partner in equitable family engagement? ParentPowered is here to help. Join an upcoming info session to learn why educators love our family engagement curricula, which deliver evidence-based learning activities to families weekly via text message.

It’s tough to find a school that doesn’t employ some form of parent-teacher conference — a gathering in which educators meet with the families of each student they serve. These meetings occur about once or twice per year and are often brief, lasting around 15-30 minutes on average. The goal is for everyone to have a shared understanding of where kids are performing well and where they can continue to grow.

In the past, these conferences may have been one of the few touchpoints between home and school about student growth and development. This form of parent-teacher communication may also have emphasized the teacher, as an expert in learning and instruction, imparting knowledge to families about their child. 

But parents are also experts — on their children! There is ample opportunity for educators to reimagine the parent-teacher conference as one of a variety of tools for information exchange , collaboration, and trust-building between home and school. 

A multiethnic family meets with their young son's kindergarten teacher in the classroom.

Here are a few ways to revitalize your parent-teacher conferences and help your staff open the door to building a positive relationship with each of their students’ families:

  • Let parents lead the conversation. Start each conference by offering space to parents to ask questions, share what they want to understand or learn more about their child’s schooling, and any concerns or hopes they have for their student. You can weave in critical information about that student’s classroom experiences as relates to these questions, while also ensuring parents feel heard and like they’re part of the collaboration.
  • Explore how communication can continue after the conference . Technology tools offer educators so many opportunities to keep the conversations with families going with parents, with minimal efforts on a teacher’s part. Research shows that when families receive even short messages at regular intervals from their school, it can boost student learning, even at the secondary level ( Kraft & Rodgers, 2015 ). Find the digital tools that can support staff with maintaining a line of communication with parents after the conference concludes
  • Meet with families out into the community . This strategy can be used across multiple channels of communication with schools and their families. Discover where your families gather beyond school walls — perhaps they are members of faith-based organizations, or frequently take advantage of a local library. Partner with these community groups to host events such as a teacher meet-and-greet at locations where families already gather and feel safe. Community organizations can be powerful allies in cultivating trust between families and their schools.

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Another popular way to involve families in student learning is the on-campus family night. It may come in various forms, like a family reading night or a parenting workshop, and these events create excellent opportunities for families to learn ways that they can support their children’s learning outside (and even inside) of the classroom environment. These workshops may also boost parents’ confidence in their own abilities and knowledge!

And — in the past, families who could attend these family nights live may have missed out entirely on the benefits these activities impact.

Technology has radically shifted what’s possible for school districts when it comes to supporting events like family night across their campuses. Virtual family workshops that became a staple for some schools during the pandemic continue to be an effective means to reach families across a community who may not be able to attend a live event. Other digital tools for family engagement, like ParentPowered’s text-based curricula , bring everyday learning opportunities to families directly — delivered right into their pockets, at no extra cost to parents. 

Take a look at a few sample messages sent weekly to parents and see how family engagement can grow alongside kids and their families, from birth through high school. 

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Many of us can remember our own school take-home folders from elementary school, stuffed full of slips for parents to sign, reminders and announcements about upcoming school events, and examples of recent work we did in class. Whether these folders are physical or digital, they are a handy communication tool for teachers to send information out to families.

But what if these folders instead became the conduit for two-way communication between school and home — where families are sharing information with teachers just as often?

That’s exactly what Missy Martin asked herself as she and her family engagement team at Lexington 1 School District sought to revitalize their communication strategies with parents. Read our interview with Missy to learn how her team reshaped the classic take-home folder into an elevated communication tool and how teachers can make small but powerful shifts like this to cultivate parental engagement. 

Colorful, friendly, and fun — school newsletters are a great way to push general announcements and updates about what’s happening on campus to families, all in one place. I personally looked forward to reading school newsletters with my parents when I was in elementary school, hoping to see my classroom highlighted or my face in one of the photos.

But here again, information shared via school newsletters (or even the school website) can become one-directional — from school to home, fullstop. Fortunately, we can look to examples in the field for ways to reimagine using school newsletters to build reciprocal relationships with families. 

An excerpt from Hayward Unified School District's newsletter celebrating the Parent-of-the-Month.

Dekalb County School District , for instance, designed their parent and family engagement website to publish both regular school news and information about local resources, with direct links to access these organizations’ websites. Rio de Valle Middle School uses their principal’s annual letters to encourage families to submit feedback through a survey as part of their local accountability planning process. Hayward Unified School District celebrates members of its parent community with a monthly Parent of the Month column in its district newsletters.

Here are more suggestions for school leaders to explore as they craft school newsletters that nurture community engagement. 

The front office is often the first place a parent experiences when they arrive on a new campus for the very first time. It’s a critical hub that keeps schools running smoothly and a central location in which parents can get basic information they need about the school.

It’s also the perfect place to reimagine how schools can make a great first impression with families — setting the tone for their partnership right from the start!

In a recent panel interview, Jessica Webster of MAEC, Inc. and Rebecca Honig of ParentPowered offered helpful tips and tricks for educators for how to take advantage of the front office to create a positive, welcoming environment for families:

  • Post signs in your families’ home languages. It is powerful for parents to see their native language reflected in their child’s learning environment, as it signals that this school welcomes their background and cultural identity. Practically speaking, translating signs also ensures families can get the help they may need, or at least indicate to school staff if they need a translator toward that end.
  • Create a family resource wall. Connecting families with community resources is one of the most practical ways a school can nurture family wellbeing and in turn, their capacity to engage with student learning. Everyone deserves and needs to have their basic needs met, and a school front office can be the starting point to introduce families to local organizations, programs, and opportunities that can help. Collect pamphlets and other advertising materials from community partners in your area and make them readily available for parents to grab whenever they visit your school sites.

Want more insights into these and more habits of highly effective parental engagement? Read our blog post summarizing key takeaways or watch the full webinar !

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Family engagement activities are often baked into the culture of younger grade levels. But when kids make the transition from elementary school into middle and high school, it’s not uncommon for schools and families to box their collaboration into less frequent intervals. For some schools, middle and high school family engagement may be limited to mere phone calls and emails — or otherwise, just pure myth.

But families are critical players on students’ learning teams no matter what age they are! Though the role of families certainly evolves as students get older, adolescent family engagement does exist, and it contributes as powerfully to positive learning environments in upper grade levels as it does in lower ones.

In fact, research studies have shown that when secondary school families are appropriately engaged and supportive of their students’ learning, kids are less likely to drop out of school and benefit academically ( Jensen & Minke, 2017 ). 

A Latina mother smiles at her adolescent daughter as they walk together.

Here are just a few ways to reimagine family-school partnerships at the middle and high school levels, as shared by Edutopia :

  • Partner with local businesses and organizations to bring school information into the community . Religious-affiliated locations, community centers, even local restaurants are excellent places that high schools can connect where families already gather. See if your school can set up a local bulletin board in these locations about upcoming school events or activities. You can also invite local business owners to support or even host student workshops about job readiness or career planning for high school students , leaning on their real-world perspectives and examples. 
  • Tap into parent leaders to cultivate an advocacy group. This is an especially handy approach to connect with families that speak different languages or represent different cultural groups within your school community. Identify parent leaders or members of these communities that may be interested in helping share information about school activities with other parents. Even hosting something as informal as a “Coffee Day with the Principal” can be a great way to build a relationship with families, through people they already know and trust.

Request a consultation about middle school family engagement today!

This list barely scratches the surface of what’s possible when school and district administrators reimagine their existing parent engagement activities and think outside the box. But at the core of all these ideations and evolutions is the philosophy that families and educators are on the same team, and that each has a critical role to play in supporting a student to grow and thrive. 

ParentPowered is proud to support families at schools and districts across the country with creating everyday learning moments that evolve right alongside their kids. The best part? It’s easy for school administrators to implement with just a few clicks. Take a tour to discover the power of low-lift, high-impact family engagement curricula, available from birth through high school.

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Every week you'll receive new resources for families, insights from research, and direct feedback from families about what they want from you, their educational partners.

The Top 5 Essential Components of a Family Engagement Toolkit

The Top 5 Essential Components of a Family Engagement Toolkit

Every family engagement toolkit is unique to its school, district, or program. Yet many contain key ingredients that increase the toolkit’s impact on learning. ParentPowered explores the five essential components, offering educators videos, guides, and more along the way!

Communication vs. Engagement: The Power of Family Engagement Platforms in Education

Communication vs. Engagement: The Power of Family Engagement Platforms in Education

Family engagement solutions offer far more comprehensive support to schools than simple communication apps. Discover how ParentPowered programs set up everyone for successful partnership to serve students.

5 Key Questions to Ask When Selecting Your Family Engagement Software

5 Key Questions to Ask When Selecting Your Family Engagement Software

Family engagement software is more available than ever before. But how do administrators select the right program for their needs? ParentPowered offers five questions steeped in research to guide your selection process.

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Improving Parent Engagement at the High School Level

It’s possible to improve communication with parents and guardians of high school students by rethinking a few outreach strategies.

Principal speaking to parents at meeting

Educators understand the importance of parental involvement in a student’s life. In graduate school, my statistics professor told us that parental support is an underlying factor influencing all research studies. By that he meant whatever we as graduate students researched for our thesis, such as correlations between experiences in nature and achievement scores in science class, the ever-greater correlation with academic success is parental support.

Leveraging parental influence is so important, and I struggled with communicating with parents at my high school. Emails, phone calls, and open houses didn’t really produce the type of parent engagement that kids needed in such a difficult school year.

Emails were the easiest for me, since I could send them en masse to a whole class of parents, but I rarely got a response, or even a confirmation that the email was read. Then, I would make phone calls. If you’re like me, however, the thought of calling parents due to behavior or grades produced a tad bit of anxiety. When I did muster the courage, as well as carved out the time to call parents, I often left a voicemail and hardly ever received a return call.

I get it. Answering a phone call at work is sometimes not doable. Personally, I don’t like talking on the phone in the era of texting. Additionally, open houses are a time when teachers stay into the evening and parents can drop by and meet them, but barely any parents attend. Last year I had one family take part in that event.

There had to be better ways to engage parents.

More Effective Strategies

Google Voice: An English teacher at my school introduced me to Google Voice . Last year, she lamented how parents never responded to emails, but when she started texting parents using Google Voice, the response rate increased significantly. She had conversations with parents that she wouldn’t have had otherwise; parents became more aware of missing assignments, and students began turning in work, resulting in increased class pass rates.

There are many benefits for teachers. They still get to keep their personal phone number private, and they can turn off Google Voice once the school day ends, allowing them to recharge both their phones and themselves. To create a Google Voice phone number, teachers need only a Google account. Texting, instead of calling, saves time and is more convenient for teachers and parents.

Interest-based open houses: In my experience, a traditional open house is generally not well attended. But when we had programs focused on a smaller population of the school, parents attended in significantly higher numbers. For example, my school had an AP Info Night that focused on explaining the benefits of AP and the classes we offered. Introduction meetings for ACT Academy, an after-school program focused on test prep for the ACT, also had a good attendance rate. Open houses that are smaller and more personalized, and focused around a particular interest, improve parent engagement.

Attending extracurriculars: Many parents are very passionate about their child’s extracurriculars, such as athletics, theater, arts, or robotics. I was asked a few months ago to be the scorebook keeper for basketball games for the high school teams. Since I have difficulty saying no, I marked off 10 evenings in my calendar for this responsibility. In the span of just a few games, I had good conversations with more parents than I ever had in the confines of my classroom. We talked about anything from previous teachers to current academics to challenges in our area of South Knoxville, Tennessee. I felt like I was truly part of the community.

Of course, it’s not just athletics; students are involved in many extracurriculars. The school musical, marching band competitions, choral concerts, and robotics competitions are just a few examples of where teachers can interact with parents while simultaneously supporting students. A teacher’s presence at these events communicates to both students and parents that they care about kids beyond any test score.

Admittedly, it’s very difficult for some teachers to attend extracurriculars. Teachers might have responsibilities with younger children they need to pick up from day care or with older children involved in their own extracurricular events. Some teachers have a part-time job in the evenings to help pay bills. Other teachers serve as bus aides before and after school, and that requires a great deal of time and energy. Attending extracurriculars is going above and beyond expectations.

Let’s be clear, this school year is challenging, and teachers are doing so much already. There’s pressure to make up for lost time from closures and virtual learning, and students are misbehaving, not turning in work, and glued to their phones, further compounding academic problems. Teachers shouldn’t overextend themselves and go to every extracurricular event, which would be impossible anyway due to the quantity of activities taking place after school. It’s good to know one’s limits.

Since parents and guardians are such important stakeholders in a child’s education, let’s find the best and most effective ways as educators to communicate with them. In a school year requiring so much energy regarding mask mandates, student behavior, improving academic performance, and giving kids a safe space, teachers need all the help that’s available.

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Parent Involvement Can Benefit Children in Many Ways

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Academic Achievement

Social functioning, mental health.

Parent involvement in their kids' education has far-reaching benefits. Here are the effects that researchers have found most consistently.

Countless studies have found that kids perform better in school when their parents are involved with their schoolwork.   Compared to students whose parents are uninvolved, kids with involved parents get better grades and are thought more highly of by teachers. These effects remain in the future, even if parents become less involved as the child ages. Parent involvement in school-based activities seems to have the greatest effect on kids' grades, but home-based parent involvement also plays at least some role.  

Involved parents enhance school performance in a number of ways, including by fostering a mastery orientation toward learning and encouraging self-discipline , a skill that's critical to school success.  

Kids whose parents are involved with their schoolwork attend school more regularly than kids whose parents are uninvolved.   This probably occurs for a number of reasons. For one, parents who are involved typically value school highly and encourage consistent attendance. Secondly, kids who get help from parents tend to feel more academically competent, so they are less likely to want to avoid going to school . Finally, parent involvement improves kids' attitudes about school, making school attendance more desirable.

Behavior issues often begin to appear during the tween years, especially as kids' cognitive development leads them toward risk-taking. Thankfully, parental attention can help to head off many of these behavior issues. For instance, children with involved parents have lower rates of substance use and delinquent acts compared to kids whose parents are uninvolved.   In addition, kids behave better and less aggressively in the classroom when their parents are involved with their education.

Parent involvement in education also aids kids' social functioning.   In particular, kids with involved parents have better peer interactions than kids with uninvolved parents. Their social skills also seem to be more advanced. Notably, advanced social skills, in turn, lead to better academic outcomes.

Finally, kids with involved parents have better mental health than children whose parents do not get involved in their education. For one, parent involvement in education fosters kids' self-esteem . Children with involved parents also have enhanced skills for regulating emotions and feel negative emotions less often.   All in all, when parents choose to become involved with their kid's schoolwork, kids benefit not only in the classroom but far beyond it.

El nokali NE, Bachman HJ, Votruba-drzal E. Parent involvement and children's academic and social development in elementary school . Child Dev . 2010;81(3):988-1005. doi:10.1111/j.1467-8624.2010.01447.x

Topor DR, Keane SP, Shelton TL, Calkins SD. Parent involvement and student academic performance: A multiple mediational analysis . J Prev Interv Community . 2010;38(3):183-97. doi:10.1080/10852352.2010.486297

Gonzalez-DeHass AR. Parent Involvement for Motivated Learners: Encouraging Self-Directed and Resilient Students . Philadelphia, PA: Routledge; 2019.

Lara L, Saracostti M. Effect of parental involvement on children's academic achievement in Chile . Front Psychol . 2019;10:1464. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2019.01464

Hayakawa M, Giovanelli A, Englund MM, Reynolds AJ. Not just academics: Paths of longitudinal effects from parent involvement to substance abuse in emerging adulthood . J Adolesc Health . 2016;58(4):433-439. doi:10.1016/j.jadohealth.2015.11.007

El Nokali NE, Bachman HJ, Votruba-Drzal E. Parent involvement and children's academic and social development in elementary school . Child Dev . 2010;81(3):988-1005. doi:10.1111/j.1467-8624.2010.01447.x

Fiorilli C, Grimaldi capitello T, Barni D, Buonomo I, Gentile S. Predicting adolescent depression: The interrelated roles of self-esteem and interpersonal stressors . Front Psychol . 2019;10:565. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2019.00565

Hornby G, Lafaele R. Barriers to parental involvement in education: An explanatory model . Educational Review. 2010;63(1):37-52.

By Rebecca Fraser-Thill Rebecca Fraser-Thill holds a Master's Degree in developmental psychology and writes about child development and tween parenting.

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parent involvement assignments

25 Parent Involvement Activities for Elementary Schools

  • Elementary Education

parent involvement assignments

Introduction:

An involved parent community plays a key role in a child’s academic success. In elementary schools, parent participation not only supports children’s learning but also promotes a positive school culture. Here are 25 parent involvement activities designed to strengthen the connection between parents, students, and schools.

1. Back-to-School Night: Begin building connections by hosting a back-to-school night where teachers, students, and parents can meet and foster relationships.

2. Parent Workshops: Offer informative workshops on topics such as study habits, online safety, or effective communication with children.

3. Classroom Breakfasts: Invite parents to enjoy breakfast with their child in the classroom once a month to encourage bonding and engagement in school life.

4. Family Fun Nights: Schedule regular family-centered events such as movie nights or game nights at your school.

5. Parent-Teacher Conferences: Organize periodic conferences for teachers and parents to discuss student progress.

6. Reading Buddies: Create partnerships between parents and students to read together and promote literacy.

7. Career Day Presentations: Invite parents to present on their careers during classroom sessions, exposing students to various professions.

8. Class Specific Facebook Groups: Establish private groups where class updates can be shared and questions addressed by teachers and parents alike.

9. Classroom Volunteers: Provide opportunities for parents to assist in daily classroom activities or special events.

10. Attend Field Trips: Request parent chaperones for educational excursions.

11. Fundraising Committees: Recruit parents to help organize fundraisers supporting educational initiatives or resources for the school.

12. Book Fairs: Coordinate yearly book fairs that involve parents in promoting reading and selecting age-appropriate materials for their children.

13. International Night: Celebrate cultural diversity by encouraging families to share their heritage through food, music, and art.

14. School Improvement Projects: Engage parents in beautification efforts or resource campaigns to better the school environment.

15. Parent Teacher Organization (PTO): Establish an active PTO where parents can advocate for school policies and be involved in decision-making processes.

16. Student Recognition Programs: Involve parents in recognizing their children’s achievements through awards ceremonies and special celebrations.

17. School Plays and Concerts: Encourage parents to attend school performances to show their support for their children’s creativity and talent.

18. Sports Day: Organize a day of friendly athletic competitions with parent-student teams, promoting an active lifestyle and school spirit.

19. School Newsletter: Include a section highlighting parent contributions and celebrating their active role within the school community.

20. Science Fairs: Invite parents to participate in annual science fairs, either by helping their children develop projects or serving as judges.

21. Art Exhibitions: Showcase students’ artwork with the help of parent volunteers setting up exhibits around the campus.

22. Beautification Days: Designate a day for families to work together on landscaping projects or cleaning initiatives at the school.

23. Parent Mentors: Pair experienced parents with new families to help them navigate the school system and alleviate common concerns.

24. Open Classrooms: Allow parents to attend lessons on designated days, providing insight into the learning process within the classroom.

25. Afterschool Clubs: Collaborate with parents in developing and leading extracurricular activities that foster student interests and talents.

Conclusion:

A thriving elementary school depends on strong parent involvement. By offering diverse opportunities for parental participation, schools can foster positive relationships that ultimately benefit students in their educational journey and personal development. Prioritize establishing a committed parent community in your elementary school and witness its profound impact on students’ success, morale, and connection to the school community.

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Project Appleseed Parental Involvement

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Teacher & Parenting

Welcome to the home of  National Parental Involvement Day  & Public School Volunteer Week!

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Parent & Family Engagement Plan

parent involvement assignments

Take the Pledge!

10 Step Family Engagement Plan

Federal policies, such as the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act and the Every Student Succeeds Act , require schools to communicate and engage with families. School districts receiving Title I, Part A funds must have a written parent engagement plan and involve parents in the development of their Title I programs. The 10 Step Family Engagement Plan is a framework for schools to use in order to increase and improve high-impact parent involvement in their student's education.

The plan includes a variety of strategies and tactics that schools can use to connect with, engage, and sustain partnerships with families. This includes distributing the Parent Engagement Pledge and Parent Engagement Report Card , welcoming families with the Red Carpet Treatment , surveying teachers and staff to assess the use of volunteers, involving families in decision-making, and participating in National Parental Involvement Day and Public School Volunteer Week . By following these steps and using the tools provided, schools can create a more inclusive, supportive, and equitable educational environment for all students.

Form A Committee

A Family Engagement Plan should be developed and implemented with the input and participation of a diverse group of stakeholders, including:

Parents: Parents should be central to the development and implementation of a high-impact family engagement ​ , as they are the primary stakeholders in their children's education.

Teachers and school staff: Teachers and school staff should be involved in the development of the plan, as they have valuable insights and expertise about the needs and challenges of the school community.

School administration: School administrators should be involved in the development and implementation of the plan, as they have the authority and responsibility to implement policies and practices that support high-impact family engagement ​ .

School board members: School board members should be involved in the development and implementation of the plan, as they have a role in shaping the overall direction and policies of the school district.

Community members: Community members, including local businesses, faith-based organizations, and other non-profit organizations, should be involved in the development and implementation of the plan, as they can provide valuable resources and support for families and schools.

It is important for a family engagement plan to be developed and implemented with the input and participation of a diverse group of stakeholders, as this can help to ensure that the plan is responsive to the needs and priorities of the school community and has broad support.

Project Appleseed Workshop

​What are three essential aspects of​ parent engagement? 

Connect, engage and sustain.

Family Engagement

Professional

Development

Project Appleseed is a program that provides tools and resources to support the development of high-impact family engagement ​ plans in schools. To create a parent engagement plan using Project Appleseed as a framework, you can follow these steps:

1. Review the resources provided by Project Appleseed: Familiarize yourself with the resources provided by Project Appleseed, including the Parent Engagement Pledge, Parent Engagement Report Card, Red Carpet Treatment tool, and Faculty and Staff Survey. These resources can help you to understand the principles and practices of effective family engagement and identify strategies and tactics to use in your plan.

Project Appleseed's Six Slices of Family Engagement

Create A Step-by-Step Plan

​ 2. Define the purpose of the plan: Determine the goals and objectives of the family engagement plan, such as increasing parent participation in school activities, improving communication between school and home , or strengthening the relationship between school and families.

3. Involve stakeholders: Engage a diverse group of stakeholders in the planning process, including parents, teachers, school staff, school administration, school board members, and community members. This will help to ensure that the plan is responsive to the needs and priorities of the school community and has broad support.

4. Conduct a needs assessment: Conduct a needs assessment to gather data and information about the current state of family engagement at your school. This might include surveying parents, teachers, and school staff, holding focus groups with different stakeholder groups, and reviewing existing data on family engagement.

5. I dentify strategies and tactics: Identify specific strategies and tactics that will be used to achieve the goals and objectives of the plan, drawing on the resources and principles of Project Appleseed. These might include distributing the Parent Engagement Pledge and Parent Engagement Report Card, welcoming families with the Red Carpet Treatment, involving families in decision-making, and developing a school-family compact.

6. Create a timeline and action plan: Develop a timeline and action plan that outlines the steps and resources needed to implement the strategies and tactics of the plan.

7. Allocate resources: Identify and allocate the resources needed to implement the plan, including financial resources, staff resources, and community resources.

8. Implement and monitor the plan: Implement the plan and monitor progress towards achieving the goals and objectives of the plan. This might include collecting data, holding regular meetings with stakeholder groups, and making adjustments to the plan as needed.

9. Evaluate and revise the plan: Regularly evaluate the effectiveness of the plan and make revisions as needed to ensure that it is meeting the needs of the school community and achieving the desired outcomes.

10. Consider our professional development: The first step in preparing schools to overcome barriers and reap the benefits of high-impact family engagement​ to the community . Project Appleseed's professional development comes in two forms -  our Traveling Workshop or Family Engagement Toolbox Training . There are several reasons why the Traveling Workshop and Family Engagement Toolbox Training are an important professional development opportunities.

By following these steps and using the resources provided by Project Appleseed, you can create a comprehensive and effective family engagement plan that supports the success of all students in your school.

Engage with Project Appleseed’s family engagement tools

The most effective way to get the word out about Project Appleseed's  Parent Engagement Pl edge is to use it in all parts of your school outreach. Make the Parent Engagement Pledge an integral point of reference for all that you do in your schools. In this way, all partners will understand how their commitments and their actions contribute to improved student learning with high-impact family engagement. Passing out the Parent Engagement Pledge to parents once and hoping for the best -- seldom works! 

There are three essential aspects of parent engagement — connect, engage and sustain. Using your Pledge is the critical step that moves the compact from  planning  to action, from paper to partnership with parents. First, people need to know about the Parent Engagement Pledge--what it is and how they can get involved. Launching the Parent Engagement Pledge is a great opportunity to create new partnerships and to reach out to families and community members who have not been involved at the school before. When it comes to "Get-Out-The-Pledge" or "GOTP" efforts, there are a number of popular tactics schools use to get families engaged with the Pledge. Some steps may not apply to your school or district.

Successful  school-family partnerships  require the sustained mutual collaboration, support, and participation of school staffs and families. If families are to work with schools as full partners in the education of their children, schools must provide them with the opportunities and support they need for success.

​ Schools can start by distributing the Parent Engagement Pledge and Parent Engagement Report Card to all families by ordering Project Appleseed's  Family Engagement Toolbox .

1. The Parent Engagement Pledge

Almost every day, citizens are urged to lend a hand at schools. Educators welcome volunteers, but we all know that good volunteer programs don't happen by accident. Schools that are most successful in  engaging parents  and other family members in support of their children's learning look beyond traditional definitions of parent involvement-participating in a parent teacher organization or signing quarterly report cards-to a broader conception of parents as full partners in the education of their children.

2. Parent Engagement Report Card

The  Parent Engagement Report Card  is a self-diagnostic tool complementary tool to the Parental Involvement Pledge. It is intended to help parents rate their contributions to their child's success at school. Use these 31 questions as a guide to discover some of the ways that you can help your child at home and at school. The results will be emailed to you and will never be shared or sold. 

3. W elcome families with the Red Carpet Treatment

The Red Carpet Treatment tool is our family friendly walk through process and it is part of the  Family Engagement Toolbox . The Red Carpet Treatment is an opportunity to meet as a team in order to identify ways in which the school can create a more welcoming environment for families. Parents, including parents of children with disabilities, community members, school board members, educators, and administrators are asked to consider looking at the school through the lenses of all of the families who attend that school.

4. Survey Teachers and Staff

One of the first steps in developing a volunteer program is for staff to assess your school’s use of volunteers. You should agree on the reasons for using volunteers and how volunteers fit into the school’s structure. Use the Faculty and Staff Parent Engagement Pledge Volunteer Request in the Parental Involvement Toolbox for teachers and school staff to communicate their need for volunteers. The information should be collected by the person designated by the principal, volunteer coordinator or parent group leader who will record those needs.  

5. Create a database of Pledged volunteers

Track and measure the family volunteer time for classrooms and schools. Input all hard copies of the Pledge into the Parent Engagement Pledge Volunteer Database xls (Included in the Family Engagement Toolbox). Project Appleseed will provide member schools Excel spreadsheet so that all volunteers and tasks can be in one database. The Parent Engagement Pledge has an Inventory of Volunteer Interest survey with a list of opportunities that can be shared and collected by the volunteer coordinator. Now its time for your first volunteers to call these parents to remind them to return the Pledge!

6. Contact Pledged volunteers

Thank the volunteer for his or her interest in your school.  Provide a brief background of your school and clarify information from the Pledge. Let the parent, grandparent or caring adult discuss his or her background. Explain your schools’s expectations of volunteers (some of this discussion may need to occur after you’ve identified the specific position for the prospect).  Ask the volunteer if he or she has any questions or concerns. Agree on the next steps. 

7. Establish the process for Volunteering In the School

You might want to consider wether your district requires that volunteers must attend a volunteer orientation to review volunteer needs, roles and responsibilities, volunteer agreements, sign-in logs, fingerprinting and background checks.

8. Support  training  for teachers and other staff to work effectively with families

Project Appleseed's Traveling Workshop is a one-day session and our Parental Involvement Toolbox Training is two hours - both have highly effective transfer skills and knowledge. Project Appleseed’s workshops and online trainings provide a program for schools and communities that focuses on the techniques and skills in family engagement that has long-term benefits. 

9. Awards and Recognition

The school will recognize accomplishments of volunteers in at least one school-wide event and on the school board. Project Appleseed Certificates of Family Engagement for schools and parents are part of the Family Engagement Toolbox.

10. Rinse and Repeat Each Year

Did you get the number of volunteers that you wanted? Repeat this process over and over until it becomes a regular part of your school's culture. 

A dozen ways to engage parents and families

Today, everyone is overwhelmed with information, and many people have trouble listening to any message closely. Experts say that it often takes eight reminders or notices for someone to say finally, "I've heard of that." When spreading the word about the Parent Engagement Pledge and encouraging people to support it, be patient: you can count on having to remind people many times. A Parent Engagement Pledge marketing effort designed to reach all parents/caregivers — several times — will raise awareness about your school's Parent Engagement Pledge drive. 

Face-to-Face Contact

Parent-Teacher Conferences : Discuss student progress during  parent-teacher conferences . Explain the school's high academic expectations for all students.  The process can begin with the distribution of the Parent Engagement Pledge at parent/teacher conferences. Parent/teacher conferences and meetings must include the Parent Engagement Pledge Compact as it relates to the child’s achievement as required by  Title I, Section 1116, (Every Student Succeeds Act of 2015 . Parent/teacher conferences shall occur at least annually, during which the compact shall be discussed as the compact relates to the individual child’s achievement. 

Teacher home visits : Research has found evidence that teacher home visits could increase student performance, jumpstart  parent engagement , reduce discipline problems and increase overall positive attitudes toward school. If done correctly, a home visit program can give teachers, parents and students a better opportunity for connection,  communication  and  collaboration .

Reach out to groups at the right meetings, events and venues : Aim to reach lots of people, especially those who family members who might not be ready to be involved at school or home. 

Events : Schools are encouraged to host a new event on — or move an existing event to National Parent Involvement Day and Public School Volunteer Week to honor parents. This is the perfect opportunity to ask parents and families to take the Parental Involvement Pledge. At school  open houses  parents can take the Pledge on-line through any school computers connected to the Internet.

Groups : Coordinate with organizations already doing parent and family engagement in your school community, such as your school’s parent groups like the PTA/PTO. Touch base with all the school’s stakeholders to let them know your plans, provide them copies of the Parental Involvement Pledge, and ask them to attend any offered family engagement meetings or trainings.

Community:  Churches   neighborhood gathering places, community colleges, technical schools, vocational/alternative schools. Community/sporting events

Door-to-door canvassing:  This tactic involves volunteers knocking on doors and asking parents face-to-face to show up and volunteer in school. Some volunteers shy away from this kind of engagement, but it’s proven to be more efficacious than phone campaigns.

Telecommunications

Text messaging:  In the era of cell phones, text messaging has proven to be a notably effective way of reaching people. It’s a particularly popular way of connecting with younger parents, who may actively prefer texting as opposed to speaking on the phone. According to Child Trends 2021 research revie, several studies noted that parents found informational texts to be helpful and a good way to receive information from a trusted source). Despite being a light-touch support, evaluations of text blasts found that exposure to text messages could impact some parents’ beliefs, for example, about their preparedness for motherhood and even increase parent engagement in activities with their child at home.

Phone calls:  Volunteers can call families and remind them of their volunteering options. This is a popular tactic because it allows volunteers to participate from anywhere there’s a phone. However, it’s considered increasingly ineffective in the era of caller ID and unlisted cell phone numbers. 

Online Outreach

Email:   Emailing families to remind them of goals or upcoming meetings, provide suggestions, tips, or prompts to try out an activity, or just check in can be used to supplement in-person or virtual interventions keep important information on parents’ minds and encourage best practices.

Online forums and virtual group meetings: Online forums and virtual group meetings were engagement strategies used to supplement several online learning and virtual coaching programs identified in our review. Virtual “bulletin boards” or forums were common and enabled participants to share their experiences and participate in discussions, sometimes in response to prompts posted by staff, as they completed training programs. In addition to online learning programs, monthly group videoconferences was also used as a strategy in one-on-one virtual coaching programs to allow opportunities for families to connect and support one another.

Social Media:  Many parents are already on  Facebook  and  Twitter , so it makes sense to communicate with them about the Pledge on platforms with which they are already familiar. Online GOTP efforts often seek to educate them about the process.

Contact local media:  Reach out to your local media to let them know when and where you’ll be distributing the Pledge. Ask the local newspaper to reprint the Parental Involvement Pledge as part of Newspapers In Education.

Direct Mail

Direct mail:  This is an early outreach form of GOTP. It involves mailing flyers that remind parents of school event dates, ways they can volunteer, and they can volunteer.  Include the Pledge in back-to-school and new student orientation packets. Reprint the Pledge to include the school's newsletter. Backpack the Pledge to be sent home as a handout with the students. Attach the Pledge to the weekly lunch menu.

Our Model for Change

Project Appleseed's logic model provides the basic framework that illustrates our program’s theory of change. It shows how day-to-day activities connect to the outcomes and impacts the program it seeks to achieve.

Strategic Approach Impacts Vertical.jpg

Also see:  

The Parental Involvement Pledge

Parental Involvement Toolbox

Family Engagement Professional Development, Traveling Workshop or Parental Involvement Toolbox Training.

Strategies to Virtually Support and Engage Families of Young Children during COVID-19 (and Beyond) 

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Parental Involvement vs. Parental Engagement

A young boy of color sits between his two parents in a classroom, listening to his teacher talk.

Par­ents are vital in ensur­ing their children’s safe­ty, secu­ri­ty, and well-being as well as their edu­ca­tion­al success.

Parental involve­ment in school is key: In a  1994 meta-analy­sis of 66 stud­ies and oth­er pub­li­ca­tions, researchers found that fam­i­ly ​ “ makes crit­i­cal con­tri­bu­tions to stu­dent achieve­ment from the ear­li­est child­hood years through high school.” Efforts to improve chil­dren’s edu­ca­tion­al out­comes ​ “ are much more effec­tive when the fam­i­ly is active­ly involved,” the researchers con­clud­ed .

What Is the Dif­fer­ence Between Parental Involve­ment and Engagement?

What many may not know is that there is an impor­tant dif­fer­ence between parental involve­ment and parental engagement.

An involved par­ent takes part in the activ­i­ties already deter­mined by the school. An engaged par­ent takes a step fur­ther, often becom­ing part of the school’s deci­sion-mak­ing process.

Think of the two as com­pli­men­ta­ry actions, a kind of yin and yang that togeth­er pro­duce bet­ter out­comes for students.

Parental involve­ment may include class­room vol­un­teer­ing, chap­er­on­ing school events, par­tic­i­pat­ing in par­ent-teacher con­fer­ences and oth­er com­mu­ni­ca­tion with teach­ers. Edu­ca­tors large­ly con­trol these activ­i­ties, invit­ing par­ents to participate.

With engage­ment, schools inten­tion­al­ly give par­ents oppor­tu­ni­ties to offer their own input, devel­op on their own abil­i­ties and take own­er­ship over ideas. Effec­tive engage­ment can include train­ing for par­ents of chil­dren with spe­cial needs and involv­ing par­ents in key school-wide decisions.

It is dri­ven, fore­most, by par­ents’ needs as their children’s pri­ma­ry caregivers.

Long­time edu­ca­tor Lar­ry Fer­laz­zo has writ­ten that while par­ent involve­ment often involves one-way com­mu­ni­ca­tion, par­ent engage­ment involves two-way con­ver­sa­tions. These con­ver­sa­tions occur not just through more inten­tion­al com­mu­ni­ca­tion but through efforts like home vis­its and phone calls to par­ents in cri­sis or rou­tine check-ins ​ “ that don’t nec­es­sar­i­ly only hap­pen when there’s a prob­lem with a child.”

Down­load the Annie E. Casey Foun­da­tion’s Engag­ing Par­ents, Devel­op­ing Lead­ers report. This pub­li­ca­tion intro­duces an assess­ment and plan­ning tool to help non­prof­its eval­u­ate their par­ent engage­ment efforts and chart a path toward deep­er part­ner­ships with par­ents and caregivers.

Exam­ples of Par­ent Involve­ment vs. Engagement

Par­ents can become involved in their chil­dren’s edu­ca­tion by: 

  • attend­ing or vol­un­teer­ing at school functions;
  • dis­cussing school events;
  • help­ing out with home­work; and
  • read­ing with children;

Becom­ing more involved cre­ates a sup­port­ive learn­ing envi­ron­ment at home.

Schools can build engage­ment by:

  • involv­ing par­ents in school-wide deci­sion-mak­ing, from instruc­tion to nutrition;
  • devel­op­ing pro­gram­ming for par­ents that trains them in key areas such as dig­i­tal skills;
  • invit­ing par­ents in to learn more about how schools work and how they can meet their children’s needs;
  • ini­ti­at­ing ​ “ par­ent acad­e­mies” con­ceived and run by par­ents them­selves, focus­ing on con­cerns and needs that they iden­ti­fy; and
  • encour­ag­ing par­ents to see their school as an insti­tu­tion that is part of a neigh­bor­hood or larg­er community.

Fer­laz­zo, the edu­ca­tor, said it best when he wrote: ​ “ A school striv­ing for fam­i­ly involve­ment often leads with its mouth — iden­ti­fy­ing projects, needs and goals and then telling par­ents how they can con­tribute. A school striv­ing for par­ent engage­ment, on the oth­er hand, tends to lead with its ears — lis­ten­ing to what par­ents think, dream and wor­ry about. The goal of fam­i­ly engage­ment is not to serve clients but to gain partners.”

Parental Engage­ment and Parental Involve­ment Work Togeth­er for the Bet­ter Outcomes

Though parental engage­ment often pro­duces bet­ter out­comes than involve­ment alone, the best school pro­grams inter­act with par­ents in both ways. Ben­e­fits to stu­dents may include high­er grades and test scores, bet­ter atten­dance and behav­ior, increased enroll­ment in chal­leng­ing cours­es and improved social skills.

“ As teach­ers, we know that fam­i­lies must be crit­i­cal allies in cre­at­ing learn­ing com­mu­ni­ties where all chil­dren can achieve equi­table out­comes,” writes edu­ca­tor Ilene Carv­er . ​ “ We need to believe that all fam­i­lies sin­cere­ly care about their chil­dren and will do every­thing they can to sup­port them. If we, as teach­ers, reach out with respect, fam­i­ly mem­bers will get involved.”

Edu­ca­tors say that strong con­nec­tions between schools and fam­i­lies can help address impor­tant non-school fac­tors — such as health, safe­ty, and afford­able hous­ing — that account for about two-thirds of the vari­ance in stu­dent achieve­ment. These con­nec­tions can also improve par­ents’ ​ “ feel­ings of effi­ca­cy” at school and increase com­mu­ni­ty sup­port for schools themselves.

Par­ent engage­ment is ​ “ the ulti­mate goal of great schools,” accord­ing to the advo­ca­cy group Par­ents 4  Pub­lic Schools , ​ “ because it allows for not only the cre­ation of bet­ter par­ent-school part­ner­ships but also has a tremen­dous impact on stu­dent achievement.”

How Schools Can Encour­age Fam­i­ly Engagement

Schools must build rela­tion­ships, first and foremost.

One place to start? By ask­ing fam­i­lies how they want to be engaged, says Carv­er . This means ask­ing fam­i­lies ​ “ what days and times are con­ve­nient for them, and what the school could do to sup­port their involvement.”

Carv­er points to small dis­cus­sion groups or focus groups, host­ed either for­mal­ly or infor­mal­ly, as a means for gath­er­ing fam­i­ly per­spec­tives. ​ “ If fam­i­lies say that trans­porta­tion, child­care, or the need to pre­pare a meal before com­ing are bar­ri­ers, set up a ride net­work,” she writes, ​ “ invite the whole fam­i­ly, have activ­i­ties for younger chil­dren, and serve dinner.”

Schools should invite teach­ers, staff, fam­i­lies and com­mu­ni­ty mem­bers who can help view the envi­ron­ment ​ “ as a new vis­i­tor would see it,” says Carv­er. ​ “ How invit­ing is the entrance? Are there signs let­ting peo­ple know, in a friend­ly way, where to find what they’re look­ing for? What hap­pens when they go into the office? Can fam­i­lies eas­i­ly get their con­cerns addressed, ques­tions answered and prob­lems resolved?”

Putting stu­dent work in the spot­light draws fam­i­lies, Carv­er adds. ​ “ Ask teach­ers and par­ents to be ​ ‘ greeters’ and wel­come fam­i­lies as they come in. Offer inter­preters if Eng­lish is not their first lan­guage. Ask local musi­cians (many may be par­ents) to pro­vide music. And have fun!”

In areas strick­en with pover­ty and vio­lence, engage­ment is still pos­si­ble, accord­ing to edu­ca­tors. For exam­ple: In Sacra­men­to, Cal­i­for­nia, Par­ent Teacher Home Vis­its — a col­lab­o­ra­tion among an inter­faith orga­niz­ing group, the local school dis­trict and the teach­ers’ union — has result­ed in bet­ter stu­dent atten­dance, high­er grad­u­a­tion rates, more par­ent involve­ment and low­er teacher turnover, advo­cates say.

The Sacra­men­to pro­gram arose after par­ents com­plained that it was near­ly impos­si­ble to talk to teach­ers about their chil­dren. After the vis­its, advo­cates say, fam­i­lies are more com­fort­able com­ing to school.

More on Par­ent Engage­ment and Par­ent Involvement

  • Report: Engag­ing Par­ents, Devel­op­ing Leaders
  • Report: Parental Involve­ment in Education
  • Blog Post: Parental Involve­ment in Reading
  • Inter­ac­tive KIDS COUNT ® Data Book : Edu­ca­tion in the Unit­ed States

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  • Health and Child Development

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Parent Involvement Project

Parent Involvement Project at WestEd

Providing High-Quality Family Early Learning Experiences

groups of children and adults learning and at play

The PARENT INVOLVEMENT PROJECT ( PIP), which works collaboratively with parents, schools, and communities , is an innovative and multifaceted parent education program offered to school districts and addresses the needs of underserved families beginning when children enter preschool. ( Download a PDF of this page. )

parent involvement assignments

Research* shows that when parents and other adult family members meaningfully engage in children’s learning, they play a vital role in enabling children to succeed in school and later in life. PIP nurtures parents’ critical role as their child’s first and most important teachers.

An evaluation study found that parents value the family learning experiences that PIP provides. ( Download a PDF of the Executive Summary. )

PIP supports parents through a model of four closely linked and integrated components, as depicted in this graphic.

PIP Components

Parent participation in their children’s classroom.

  • Parents engage in meaningful and skill-enhancing activities with their child and other children in the context of the classroom.
  • Caring and supportive teachers model positive and responsive adult-child interactions for parents to practice in the classroom and at home.

Parent Education Workshops

  • Presenters, often community members from public agencies, who have expertise in their subject matter provide strategies and guidance for parents to support children’s learning and development across four domains: cognitive, language and literacy, social-emotional, and physical development and health .
  • Parents are encouraged to actively participate at each workshop to make it a more engaging experience.

Home Visits

  • PIP Home Visitors develop warm, mutually respectful relationships with families to enhance parent-teacher-child connections and communication.
  • Home visits focus on supporting parenting skills and practices to support children’s early learning.

Enrichment Activities

  • Field trips and school-site presentations build on children’s curiosity and enable parents and children to share learning experiences away from the classroom.
  • Activities leverage community resources, link to classroom learning, and are designed to be interesting, enjoyable, and to encourage families to seek these kinds of activities on their own.

How PIP Works

  • Parents sign a Parent Agreement at the beginning of the school year and commit to participate in the child’s classroom one session each month, attend not less than eight parent education workshops, host six home visits, participate in enrichment activities as their schedules permit, and regularly practice the parenting skills they have learned.
  • A district administrator, who has oversight of the preschool program, serves as the PIP Program Supervisor  and works to maintain the quality of PIP activities while aligning them with the regular educational program.
  • The PIP Facilitator, who, working collaboratively with district staff, manages the day-to-day aspects of what PIP provides.
  • The PIP Home Visitor focuses on the home-visit component, linking the knowledge and skills parents acquire through the parent education workshops and classroom participation.
  • Teachers encourage parents’ participation in the classroom and communicate regularly with PIP staff regarding the needs of individual children and families.
  • PIP’s strongest advocates may be  school principals and district administrators who can attest to how well the PIP components are being implemented, build enthusiasm among school staff, and help instill a strong culture for parent participation.

WestEd’s Role in Supporting the Parent Involvement Project

Critical to PIP’s success are the direction and oversight that WestEd brings to the project’s implementation and administration. Specifically, WestEd:

  • oversees PIP implementation at each participating school district to ensure program fidelity ;
  • provides ongoing support and guidance in consultation with district PIP Program Supervisors;
  • provides a platform for sharing experiences and ideas and for encouraging innovation ;
  • advises in the selection, hiring, and supervision of PIP Facilitators and PIP Home Visitors ;
  • provides professional development opportunities for PIP staff to enhance the quality of implementation;
  • initiates and supports district efforts to sustain parent learning and family engagement as children transition to kindergarten and beyond ; and
  • evaluates project performance to validate outcomes and identify areas for quality improvement.

This project has been made possible in part by a grant from an advised fund of Silicon Valley Community Foundation.

* Related Research

The following research speaks to the importance of the parent-child relationship in the context of the home and school:

  • Barrueco, S., Smith, S., & Stephens, S. (2015). Supporting parent engagement in linguistically diverse families to promote young children’s learning: Implications for early care and education policy. New York, NY: Child Care & Early Education Research Connections. Retrieved from https://www.researchconnections.org/childcare/resources/30185/pdf
  • Dunst, C. J., Bruder, M. B., Trivette, C. M., & Hamby, D. W. (2006). Everyday activity settings, natural learning environments, and early intervention practices. Journal of Policy and Practice in Intellectual Disabilities , 3 (1), 3–10.
  • Halgunseth, L. C., Peterson, A., Stark, D. R., & Moodie, S. (2009). Family engagement, diverse families, and early childhood education programs: An integrated review of the literature. Washington, DC.
  • Henderson, A., & Mapp, K. (2002). A new wave of evidence: The impact of school, family, and community connections on student achievement. Austin, TX: Southwest Educational Development Laboratory. Retrieved from https://www.sedl.org/connections/resources/evidence.pdf
  • National Scientific Council on the Developing Child. (2004). Young children develop in an environment of relationships (Working Paper No. 1). Retrieved from https://developingchild‌.harvard‌.edu‌/index‌.php‌/resources‌/reports_and_working_papers/working_papers/wp1/

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Parents Are Highly Involved in Their Adult Children’s Lives, and Fine With It

New surveys show that today’s intensive parenting has benefits, not just risks, and most young adults seem happy with it, too.

parent involvement assignments

By Claire Cain Miller

American parenting has become more involved — requiring more time, money and mental energy — not just when children are young, but well into adulthood.

The popular conception has been that this must be detrimental to children — with snowplow parents clearing obstacles and ending up with adult children who have failed to launch , still dependent upon them.

Listen to This Article

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But two new Pew Research Center surveys — of young adults 18 to 34 and of parents of children that age — tell a more nuanced story. Most parents are in fact highly involved in their grown children’s lives, it found, texting several times a week and offering advice and financial support. Yet in many ways, their relationships seem healthy and fulfilling.

Nine in 10 parents rate their relationships with their young adult children as good or excellent, and so do eight in 10 young adults, and this is consistent across income. Rather than feeling worried or disappointed about how things are going in their children’s lives, eight in 10 parents say they feel proud and hopeful.

“These parents, who are Gen X, are more willing to say, ‘Hey, this is good, I like these people, they’re interesting, they’re fun to be with,’” said Karen L. Fingerman, a professor at the University of Texas at Austin who studies adults’ relationships with their families.

As for the adult children, she said, “You get advice from a 50-year-old with life experience who is incredibly invested in you and your success.”

Also, these close relationships don’t seem to be holding back young people from reaching certain milestones of independence. Compared with their parents as young adults in the early 1990s, they are much more likely to be in college or have a college degree, Pew found. They are somewhat more likely to have a full-time job, and their inflation-adjusted incomes are higher. (They are much less likely, though, to be married or have children.)

Experts say contemporary hyper-intensive parenting can go too far — and has only gotten more hands-on since the young adults in the survey were children. Young people say their mental health is suffering , and recent data shows they are much more likely to say this than those before them. Some researchers have sounded alarms that one driver of this is children’s lack of independence, and that overparenting can deprive children of developing skills to handle adversity.

The new data suggests that, indeed, young adults are more reliant on their parents — texting them for life advice when older generations may have figured out their problems on their own. But the effects do not seem to be wholly negative.

Professor Fingerman and her colleagues have found that close relationships between parents and grown children protected children from unhealthy behaviors, and young adults who received significant parental support were better able to cope with change and had higher satisfaction with their lives. It was a finding “we just couldn’t believe the first time,” she said, because of the assumptions about over-involved parents.

Both things can be true, said Eli Lebowitz, director of the Program for Anxiety Disorders at the Yale Child Study Center — “that they do rely a lot on their parents, and they do get a lot of positive support from them.”

In previous research , parents often expressed ambivalence about their continued involvement in their adult children’s lives. But the Pew study suggests that has changed, Professor Fingerman said, perhaps a sign they have come to embrace it.

Among parents, seven in 10 say they are satisfied with their level of involvement in their grown child’s life. Just 7 percent say they’re too involved, and one-quarter would like even more involvement. Young adults say the same.

Adriana Goericke, from Santa Cruz, Calif., texts with her daughter, Mia, a college sophomore in Colorado, a few times a day. They share pictures of their food, workouts or funny selfies.

When her daughter asks for advice, mostly about navigating friendships and dating, her mother said she sees her role as a sounding board: “She knows I’m not going to try and run her life, but I’m always there if she needs me.”

Mia Goericke has seen friends who can’t solve problems or make small decisions on their own, but she said that’s different from asking her mother for help. “She will usually ask me what my goals are and try to understand my thinking rather than just tell me what to do,” she said. “It’s like an incredible resource I have at my fingertips.”

When baby boomers were growing up, there was a belief, rooted in the American ideal of self-sufficiency, that children should be independent after age 18. But that was in some ways an aberration, social scientists said. Before then, and again now, it has been common for members of different generations to be more interdependent.

Parents’ involvement in young adults’ lives began to grow in the 1970s. The transition to adulthood became longer , and less clear-cut: It was no longer necessarily the case that at 18 children left home for college, marriage or jobs. Parenting gradually became more intensive , as people had fewer children and invested more in their upbringings.

Cathy Perry, 66, said she has a very different relationship with her sons, 32 and 36, than she had with her parents when she was that age. They all live in the St. Louis area, and text on a family group chat several times a week. Her older son shares updates on his children, and asks for advice on his career, finances and home remodeling.

As a young adult, she lived an 11-hour drive from her parents, and calls were charged by the minute. “I feel that I have a much closer and more open relationship with my kids, where they are more free to express their opinions on things I might not agree with,” she said.

Open, emotional conversations have become more of a priority for parents, research shows : “They may be the first generation of adults who have parents who actually grew up with the mind-set of talking about this kind of stuff,” Professor Lebowitz said.

In the survey, six in 10 young adults said they still relied on their parents for emotional support, and a quarter of young adults said their parents relied on them for the same, including 44 percent of daughters who said their mothers did.

About seven in 10 parents of young adults said their children ask them for advice, especially about finances, careers, physical health and parenting (among those with children). That’s a change from when they were young — half said they rarely or never asked their parents for advice.

There were gender differences: Young adults were somewhat more likely to say they had a good relationship with their mother than their father. Young women communicated with their parents more frequently than young men.

Cultural and policy factors play a role in parents’ involvement in their grown children’s lives. In the United States , parents and children often rely on one another for child care and elder care . In many immigrant families, it is common for multiple generations to live together or support one another. And technology has made it easier to stay in regular touch.

There is also an increasing understanding that children have different needs, and decreasing stigma around helping them, said Mark McConville, a clinical psychologist in Cleveland. Consider a bright teenager with ADHD, he said. A generation ago, his potential might have been written off. Now, it’s much more likely that his parents identify the issue and find programs to support him — and as a result, that he attends college.

He said a small subset of young adults struggle with starting independent lives (the subject of his book, “ Failure to Launch : When Your Twentysomething Hasn’t Grown Up … and What to Do About It”). But overall, “this new prioritization of their relationship with their kids and attending to their kids’ needs” helps children succeed, he said.

Economic factors have changed, too. Young people are more likely than in their parents’ generation to have student debt — 43 percent do in their late 20s, compared with 28 percent when their parents were that age, Pew found — and are buying homes later, if at all .

Partly as a consequence, parents support their children financially for longer periods — one-third of young adults told Pew they were not financially independent from their parents. They are a bit more likely to live with their parents than the previous generation.

But for many families, support in the form of money or housing can be beneficial to parents, too. Of young adults living at home, three-quarters helped with expenses. One-third of young adults gave their parents financial help in the last year, particularly in low-income families.

And a majority of adult children living at home and parents in that situation said it had a positive effect on their relationship.

“There’s a two-way street going on that I think we need to acknowledge,” Professor Fingerman said. “They’re not all kids living in the basement being pampered. They’re kids having relationships with their parents that are good ones.”

Audio produced by Tally Abecassis .

Claire Cain Miller writes about gender, families and the future of work for The Upshot. She joined The Times in 2008 and was part of a team that won a Pulitzer Prize in 2018 for public service for reporting on workplace sexual harassment issues. More about Claire Cain Miller

How to Communicate Better With the Teens in Your Life

Simple strategies can go a long way toward building a stronger, more open relationship..

Active listening is an essential skill when seeking to engage any family member in conversation — teens included. Here is how to get better at it .

There are many reasons why a teen might not be opening up to you. These are the most common explanations for their silence .

Is your kid dismissing your solutions to their problems as irritating or irrelevant? It is usually because they’re not looking for you solve their problems.

Developing a healthy relationship with social media can be tricky. Here is how to talk to teens about it .

If your teen is surly or standoffish, these strategies can help you reconnect .

Are you worried that your kid might be struggling with his or her mental health? Understand the warning signs  and make sure to approach the issue with the utmost sensitivity.

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K-12 students learned a lot last year, but they're still missing too much school

Cory Turner - Square

Cory Turner

Headshot of Sequoia Carrillo

Sequoia Carrillo

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From 2022-2023, chronic absenteeism declined in 33 of the 39 states AEI looked at. But it was still a persistent problem: In a handful of places, including Nevada, Washington, D.C., Michigan, New Mexico and Oregon, roughly 1 in 3 students – or more – were chronically absent. LA Johnson/NPR hide caption

From 2022-2023, chronic absenteeism declined in 33 of the 39 states AEI looked at. But it was still a persistent problem: In a handful of places, including Nevada, Washington, D.C., Michigan, New Mexico and Oregon, roughly 1 in 3 students – or more – were chronically absent.

It's going to take aggressive interventions to repair the pandemic's destructive impact on kids' schooling.

That's the takeaway of two big new studies that look at how America's K-12 students are doing. There's some good news in this new research, to be sure – but there's still a lot of work to do on both student achievement and absenteeism. Here's what to know:

1. Students are starting to make up for missed learning

From spring 2022 to spring 2023, students made important learning gains, making up for about one-third of the learning they had missed in math and a quarter of the learning they had missed in reading during the pandemic.

That's according to the newly updated Education Recovery Scorecard , a co-production of Harvard University's Center for Education Policy Research and The Educational Opportunity Project at Stanford University.

6 things we've learned about how the pandemic disrupted learning

6 things we've learned about how the pandemic disrupted learning

The report says, "Students learned 117 percent in math and 108 percent in reading of what they would typically have learned in a pre-pandemic school year."

In an interview with NPR's All Things Considered , Stanford professor Sean Reardon said that's surprisingly good news: "A third or a quarter might not sound like a lot, but you have to realize the losses from 2019 to 2022 were historically large."

When the same team of researchers did a similar review last year, they found that, by spring of 2022, the average third- through eighth-grader had missed half a grade level in math and a third of a grade level in reading. So, the fact that students are now making up ground is a good sign.

These results do come with a few caveats, including that the researchers were only able to review data and draw their conclusions from 30 states this year.

2. Despite that progress, very few states are back to pre-pandemic learning levels

The Harvard and Stanford study of student learning includes one sobering sentence: "Alabama is the only state where average student achievement exceeds pre-pandemic levels in math." And average achievement in reading has surpassed pre-pandemic levels in just three of the states they studied: Illinois, Louisiana and Mississippi. Every other state for which they had data has yet to reach pre-pandemic levels in math and reading.

"Many schools made strong gains last year, but most districts are still working hard just to reach pre-pandemic achievement levels," said Harvard's Thomas Kane, one of the learning study's co-authors.

3. Chronic absenteeism also improved in many places ... slightly

The rate of chronic absenteeism – the percentage of students who miss 10% or more of a school year – declined from 2022 to 2023. That's according to research by Nat Malkus at the conservative-leaning American Enterprise Institute (AEI). He found chronic absenteeism declined in 33 of the 39 states he studied.

Yes, "the differences were relatively small," Malkus writes, but it's improvement nonetheless: "the average chronic absenteeism rate across these states in 2023 was 26 percent, down from 28 percent for the same 39 states in 2022."

Glass half-full: Things aren't getting worse.

4. But, again, chronic absenteeism is still high

Malkus found chronic absenteeism was at 26% in 2023. Before the pandemic, in 2019, those same states reported a rate of 15%. That adds some painful context to the "good news" two-point decline in absenteeism from 2022 to 2023. Sure, it's down, but it's still so much higher than it was and should be.

Think of it this way: In 2023, roughly 1 student out of 4 was still chronically absent across the school year.

In a handful of places, including Nevada, Washington, D.C., Michigan, New Mexico and Oregon, roughly 1 in 3 students – or more – were chronically absent. That's a crisis.

Research shows a strong connection between absenteeism and all kinds of negative consequences for students, including an increased likelihood of dropping out of school.

Chronic absenteeism also hurts the students who don't miss school. That's because, as the learning study's authors point out, when absent students return, they require extra attention and "make it hard for teachers to keep the whole class moving."

5. Poverty matters (as always)

Both the learning and the chronic absenteeism studies capture the headwinds that constantly buffet children in poverty.

"No one wants poor children to foot the bill for the pandemic," said Harvard's Kane, "but that is the path that most states are on."

On learning: Reardon told NPR "the pandemic really exacerbated inequality between students in high-poverty and low-poverty districts and students of different racial and ethnic backgrounds."

In 2023, students' academic recovery was relatively strong across groups, which is good – but it means "the inequality that was widened during the pandemic hasn't gotten smaller, and in some places it's actually gotten larger," Reardon told NPR.

In fact, the report says, "in most states, achievement gaps between rich and poor districts are even wider now than they were before the pandemic." The learning study singles out Massachusetts and Michigan as the states where those gaps in math and reading achievement widened the most between poor and non-poor students.

Similarly, Malkus, at AEI, found that, between 2019 and 2022, rates of chronic absenteeism rose much more in high-poverty districts (up from 20% to 37%) than in low-poverty districts (up from 12% to 23%).

"Chronic absenteeism has increased the most for disadvantaged students," Malkus writes, "those who also experienced the greatest learning losses during the pandemic and can least afford the harms that come with chronic absenteeism."

6. Families must play an important role in learning recovery

Both studies acknowledge that families must play an important role in helping students – and schools – find a healthy, post-pandemic normal. The problem is, surveys show parents and guardians often underestimate the pandemic's toll on their children's learning . "Parents cannot advocate effectively for their children's future if they are misinformed," says the learning study.

To combat this, the learning researchers propose that districts be required to inform parents if their child is below grade-level in math or English. Those parents could then enroll their students in summer learning, tutoring and after-school programs, all of which have benefitted from federal COVID relief dollars. That funding is set to expire this fall, and some of these learning recovery opportunities may dry up, so the clock is ticking.

7. There's a "culture problem" around chronic absenteeism

Reducing chronic absenteeism, Malkus says, will also depend on families.

"This is a culture problem," Malkus tells NPR. "And in schools and in communities, culture eats policy for breakfast every day."

By "culture problem," Malkus is talking about how families perceive the importance of daily attendance relative to other challenges in their lives. He says some parents seem more inclined now to let their students miss school for various reasons, perhaps not realizing the links between absenteeism and negative, downstream consequences.

"Look, the patterns and routines of going to school were disrupted and to some degree eroded during the pandemic," Malkus says. "And I don't think we've had a decisive turn back that we need to have, to turn this kind of behavior around, and it's going to stay with students until that culture changes."

How do you do that? Malkus points to some low-cost options — like texting or email campaigns to increase parental involvement and encourage kids to get back in school – but says these, alone, aren't "up to the scale of what we're facing now."

Higher-cost options for schools to consider could include door-knocking campaigns, sending staff on student home-visits and requiring that families of chronically absent students meet in-person with school staff.

The learning study goes one step further: "Elected officials, employers, and community leaders should launch public awareness campaigns and other initiatives to lower student absenteeism." Because, after all, students can't make up for the learning they missed during the pandemic if they don't consistently attend school now.

What both of these studies make clear is there is no one solution that will solve these problems, and success will require further investment, aggressive intervention and patience.

Malkus says, even the high-cost, high-return options will likely only drive down chronic absenteeism by about four percentage points. A big win, he says, "but four percentage points against 26% isn't going to get us where we need to go."

Edited by: Nicole Cohen Visual design and development by: LA Johnson and Aly Hurt

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Can Parents Be Held Legally Responsible for the Criminal Actions of Their Children?

Parental responsibility is called into question after jurors convict Jennifer Crumbley for her involvement in her son's deadly 2021 school shooting.

Bill Pugliano / Getty Images

How legally responsible are parents for violent crimes committed by their children?

This question was recently at the center of Oakland County, Michigan, prosecutors’ case against Jennifer Crumbley. Crumbley's teenage son killed four students and injured several others in a shooting at Oxford High School in December 2021.

The shooter, Ethan Crumbley, was sentenced to life in prison without parole in December 2023. On February 6, 2024, a jury found Jennifer guilty of four counts of involuntary manslaughter. This is reportedly the first time a parent has been convicted of those charges for a mass school shooting committed by their child.

Throughout the case, prosecutors honed in on what they believed was a pattern of negligent behavior, including failure to obtain mental health treatment for her son amid warning signs.

“Parents need to take warning signs or threats seriously and take action to help their children get the support that they need,” says Rachel Masi, PhD, a licensed clinical psychologist, the head of research for Sandy Hook Promise , and board member of the National Center for School Safety .

Did the Jennifer Crumbley conviction set a new precedent for parental responsibility when it comes to the law? A legal expert weighs in, and mental health professionals share common warning signs of a child in distress that all parents should look out for.

Parents’ Legal Responsibility to Act Amid Warning Signs of Violent Actions

The Jennifer Crumbley conviction could open the door for prosecutors to place a greater level of scrutiny on what parents do—or don’t do—to prevent violent tragedies like the one in Michigan, particularly in jurisdictions with more openness to gun laws.

“If you have a prosecutor in that jurisdiction who knows that his jury base is hot about guns, they're going to start digging a little closer into things like [parental involvement or lack thereof],” says Daniel Russo, Esq. , a former prosecutor and current criminal defense attorney based in New York’s Suffolk County. 

It would be a vast understatement to say guns are a large and very political issue. However, in closing arguments, Oakland County prosecutor Karen McDonald said that Jennifer could have done the “smallest thing” to save lives.

For instance, on the day of the shooting, the Crumbleys met with a school counselor because a teacher had found their son's drawing of a gun. Neither parent told the counselor that James, the father and Jennifer’s husband, helped their son purchase a semi-automatic weapon days before the shooting. (James Crumbley goes on trial starting March 5 also on involuntary manslaughter charges.)

Jennifer did not check her son’s backpack or return home to ensure the weapon was still there. She also took the shooter to a range, and it’s believed she was the last person to handle the gun before the deadly rampage.

“To me, the fact that she didn't safeguard this weapon seems to be the meat and potatoes of this case,” Russo says. “As a defense attorney, I could see that problem.”

But the argument about taking the teenager to a shooting range holds less weight with Russo.

“Going to a gun range is what they tell us to do as gun owners to learn how to use it,” Russo says. “If you have a jurisdiction where children can handle guns, don't we want them to understand how to do so safely? That part to me didn't speak much, but it certainly this issue of safeguarding is a concern.”

As for the meeting, Russo says the drawing of a gun is a clear red flag. 

“The fact that he's drawing these pictures certainly screams of a child who is in need of some kind of therapy,  counseling, or protection,” Russo says. “Where were those providers? And clearly, parents have a responsibility to see a kid doing something like that [and] act on it.”

The Crumbleys—and the victims their son is convicted of murdering and injuring—had no margin with timing. Looking back, should the parents have removed their son from school immediately? But is hindsight 20/20?

“I don't know that showing her a picture the kid drew is ... foreseeable that he would then go kill somebody that day,” Russo says.

But what about other potential legal leaps? For instance, is someone responsible for violent acts committed by their spouse? Weapons aren’t limited to guns. What if a child uses a kitchen knife to injure or murder someone? 

“In terms of a spouse, liability for another spouse without some facts connecting the charge [to the] spouse’s actions, I don’t see it happening,” Russo says. “When it comes to a child, [the argument is that it’s] your inherent duty to protect the child [as] a parent, and you have to be more involved in their actions.”

But it’s not cut and dry.

“It’s certainly a slippery slope,” Russo says. “If the kid takes a knife out of the kitchen drawer and kills someone, are mom and dad responsible for that? The idea that you now have to safeguard the kitchen drawer seems a little far-fetched, and I don’t see a responsible prosecutor taking it to that level. A district attorney is an elected official, but we elect them to make smart decisions. You’re hoping a prosecutor uses the facts to apply the law.”

Whether prosecutors place greater scrutiny on parental responsibility in violent crimes committed by their children remains to be seen. However, Russo believes this case may see parents placing more scrutiny on signs their child is in distress and—if applicable—adherence to gun safety practices if they own a firearm, particularly in jurisdictions with stronger gun laws.

Warning Signs Your Child Might Be a Threat to Themselves or Others—And What To Do

The legal precedent can be debated, but parents can’t control that. What Russo and three separate mental health professionals agree on is that parents can take ownership of recognizing warning signs that their child is in distress and take steps to mitigate harm.

Overcome secrets

 Two things can be true: Parents can be attuned to their children and still miss warning signs.

“Kids do keep secrets sometimes–and that can be quite appropriate,” Dr. Masi says. “For example, having a new crush at school or wanting to stay up late at a sleepover with friends. However, it is important to help your child understand what information may need to be shared with an adult.”

Dr. Masi suggests teaching children the distinction between the two. 

“If something does come up and they are not sure if it needs to be shared, tell them that the best thing to do is speak with an adult who can help decide how to proceed,” Dr. Masi says. “The parent or adult can then work with the child on what to do next.”

Other tips from Dr. Masi include:

  • Sharing a child won’t be “in trouble” for bringing something to a parent’s attention.
  • Teaching children about other trusted adults, like teachers or coaches, in case they feel more comfortable speaking with them instead of a parent.
  • Keeping conversations on the topic fluid and ongoing.

Know warning signs

Dr. Masi says there are numerous red flags a child could be a threat to themselves or others, and recognizing them can be life-saving . These warning signs, from Sandy Hook Promise, include but aren’t limited to the following:

  • Sudden withdrawal from friends, family, and activities they used to enjoy, including digital such as on social media  
  • Bullying , particularly regarding race, religion, gender, or sexual orientation differences
  • More irritable, less patient, and quicker to experience anger
  • Chronic loneliness or social isolation
  • Persistent thoughts of harming themselves or another person
  • Direct threats toward a place or person, including themselves
  • Bragging about gun or weapon access
  • Attempts to recruit others as accomplices or audience for an attack
  • Direct expression of a threat as a plan
  • Animal cruelty

Listen when others present warning signs

Parents often want to believe the best in their children—that’s natural. However, one of the flags during the Jennifer Crumbley case was that Jennifer didn’t act when a school counselor brought warning signs to her attention.

“Listen to the others that see your child in other contexts.  This could be school officials, coaches, or clergy,” says Scott Roth, PsyD , a licensed psychologist in New Jersey who also works in a school district. “They can provide insight into behaviors that you might not be able to observe.”

Seek mental health support 

Dr. Roth advises parents to seek mental health assistance for a child in distress quickly. “This can include a diagnostic workup and evaluation as well as treatment,” Dr. Roth says.

If you’re unsure where to turn, Dr. Masi suggests that parents call their child’s pediatrician, who could provide referrals. They can also search online for community health centers or directories like Psychology Today .

Zishan Khan, MD , a psychiatrist and regional director with Mindpath Health, says insurance companies can also provide the names and contact information of in-network providers. However, Dr. Khan also advises parents to be open to the fact that it may take a while to find a good fit for their child—and it may not happen with the first provider.

“Not everyone feels an immediate connection with their provider, and time and patience are often necessary to develop a rapport,” Dr. Khan says. “Also, there is a chance that a successful therapeutic alliance fails to materialize with the first clinician with whom the child undergoes treatment.”

A school may also have resources or the ability to connect parents with local providers.

“If you think your child needs help and you don’t know where to start, contact your school and ask to speak to the mental health professional at the school,” Dr. Masi says. “They will meet with the child and direct you to any local resources.”

Call the school directly

Schools can help in another way as well. Teachers, administrators, and staff may have insights into a child’s behavior or struggles and/or may serve as an ally for concerned parents.

“A parent should never hesitate to involve their child’s school when appropriate,” Dr. Khan says. “The school can potentially be the primary source of the child’s distress, especially if there is bullying involved, and a child can often benefit from various accommodations or interventions the school may be able to offer.”

Remove gun access

If your child is in distress and you have a gun in the home, experts advise parents to remove it.

“If it is not possible to remove it from the home, we recommend the firearm be securely stored and unloaded in a locked safe,” Dr. Masi says. “Ammunition should be stored separately from the firearm.”

Russo echoes similar sentiments.

“I would recommend they not have the gun in the home, but that’s my own personal belief,” Russo says. “If you are somebody that closely guards your Second Amendment rights, and you want that gun in your house, then you better make the conditions safe.”

Prevent Gun Violence By Knowing The Signs . Sandy Hook Promise .

Family-School-Community Partnerships . National Center for Safe Supportive Learning Environments . 2024.

What's Hot

School art teacher accused of secretly selling kids' assignments.

Nina Golgowski

Breaking News Reporter, HuffPost

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A schoolteacher in Canada is facing legal action after being accused of instructing his young students to create artwork in the style of Jean-Michel Basquiat and then selling copies of their creations without their knowledge or consent.

Art instructor Mario Perron of Westwood High School, Junior, in Saint-Lazare, Quebec, was served a legal notice Tuesday, along with his school board, on behalf of two parents following the alleged discovery last week that an online store featured the children’s assignments under his name.

Joel DeBellefeuille, one of the two parents taking legal action, said he’s shocked and sickened by the discovery.

In 2013, visitors look at an untitled painting by Jean-Michel Basquiat before an auction at Christie's in London. On Tuesday in Quebec, two parents took legal action after their children's assignments to create art in the style of Basquiat allegedly turned up for sale on an online site.

“I’m still very much baffled and in disbelief that this guy thought it was OK to have his own little sweatshop of 12- and 13-year-old children and just benefit off of them financially by stealing their homework,” DeBellefeuille told HuffPost on Wednesday.

Perron did not immediately respond to HuffPost’s requests for comment Wednesday.

Darren Becker, a spokesperson for the Lester B. Pearson School Board in the Montreal area, confirmed receiving the legal notice in a statement to HuffPost and said that the board is “taking these allegations very seriously.”

“An investigation is underway so the school board cannot comment on this matter any further,” the statement said.

The artwork was the alleged result of Perron instructing his students to make an original “creepy portrait” of themselves or a classmate in the late Basquiat’s style, according to a copy of the Jan. 19 homework instructions shared with HuffPost.

“I do think that it is bothering him in the sense that trust was broken between student and teacher.” - Joel DeBellefeuille

The instructions explicitly warned not to directly copy one of Basquiat’s images “because it is considered plagiarism.” Those five words were underlined for apparent emphasis.

DeBellefeuille said his son, Jack, was absent due to illness but that his classmate created a portrait of him for the assignment. This portrait was then discovered online on Thursday when Perron’s students did a Google search on Perron’s professional achievements and found his online store, according to a copy of the legal notice against Perron and the school board.

“I do think that it is bothering him in the sense that trust was broken between student and teacher,” DeBellefeuille said of his son.

Perron’s alleged page on FineartAmerica.com , which was no longer operating on Wednesday, listed thousands of items featuring the artwork of 96 students, said DeBellefeuille. These items, including mugs, tote bags, towels and jigsaw puzzles, had price tags of up to $120, according to the legal notice.

DeBellefeuille said the items initially had Perron’s full name listed as the artist under each item but that over the weekend, shortly after the allegations against Perron were made public by local news outlets, the name changed to just Perron’s initials.

“So he took his time to remove his name, but he left all the artwork and merchandise still up there, which is beyond me that he thought that that was OK. This shows clear intent on his side to continue doing what he did,” he said.

The legal notice demands $350,000 to cover moral and punitive damages as well as copyright infringement penalties under Canadian law. It also demands a formal apology, the art’s removal from the teacher’s website, and the temporary or permanent suspension of the teacher.

The school board and Perron were given until Monday to respond.

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Milagros and Christian Mendez wedding at Syndicated Brooklyn with a movie theme - no visual information provided.

On their first date, Milagros and Christian Mendez went to the movies. Four months after they started dating, Christian headed overseas to start medical school and the couple, who now live in Forest Hills, regularly streamed films together to bridge the distance between them.

That’s one of the main reasons their October 2022 wedding was held at Syndicated Brooklyn , a movie theater, bar and restaurant in Bushwick, and incorporated such movie-themed elements as a marquis proclaiming “Now Playing Miely & Chris Say I Do” and a ceremony performed right in front of the movie screen.

Before the cocktail hour, while guests sipped prosecco and munched on popcorn, a video that Milagros made queued up on the theater’s screen, featuring outtakes from her favorite rom-coms.

“We wanted guests to get into that romantic movie vibe,” Milagros told the Post. “It was a unique way to share our life with our family and friends.”

Milagros and Christian Mendez wedding sign with black text.

Weddings like these, which fully embody a couple’s interests, are having their moment, said Jesse Reing, founder of Events by Jesse , a New York City-based event-planning company.

“Couples want their guests to get a taste of who they are and feel joy,” Reing said. “Weddings are such a wonderful way to show the world —publicly — who you are as a couple.”

For animal lovers Gaby and Logan Tessler, inspiration came when they were walking through the Bronx Zoo .

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“We had been looking at venue after venue and none felt like they were part of our journey,” Logan said. “That day, we thought how nice it would be to get married at a place like this.”

In June 2023, the couple, who live in Washington Heights, did just that and, tying the knot outside the rhino house. The cocktail reception was held between the Madagascar exhibit and the sea lion pool, and at the reception in the former lion house, each table was themed to its own animal. It all made the event pretty memorable for their 150 guests.

“People had so much fun looking at the sea lions and lemur exhibit during the cocktail hour,” Gaby said. “It was a black-tie affair, but we didn’t want it to feel too stuffy and formal, so it was fun to see some of our guests wearing animal socks.”

Sharon Zhang and Matt Shay

If you’re a couple that likes electronic dance music (EDM), why not make your wedding into an EDM festival? That’s exactly what Sharon Zhang and Matt Shay were thinking when the couple, who live in Manhasset, got married in April 2023 at The Legacy Castle in Pompton Plains, New Jersey.

“We especially love trance DJs and so do a lot of our friends,” Zhang said. “We wanted to do something that’s a little bit more fun and have it be something people will look forward to.”

In addition to hiring two party robots bearing mist guns (each was 7 feet tall), more surprises awaited their guests when a very popular DJ stepped onto the custom-built stage and worked the crowd for 90 minutes.

“We told people to come to the wedding ready to rave,” Shay said. “We told them to wear comfortable shoes. We wanted it to feel almost like the Electric Zoo festival on Randall’s Island. That was our vision.” Even Zhang’s 97-year-old grandfather stayed for the whole set.

“We wanted our guests to share our interests,” she said. “We know it was memorable because people still talk about it — they tell us all the time that our wedding was really cool.”

A wedding ceremony with decorations and guests standing in a room with windows and wooden panels.

If you don’t want to go all-out with a themed hobby, just setting up some board games at your reception can add a whimsical touch, Reing said.

“We’re seeing lots of requests for game corners at weddings,” she said. “It’s not only a way to share what you like to do, but it helps ease social anxiety, too.”

At Phoebe Sandford’s 2022 wedding at the Green Building in Gowanus, Brooklyn, it was important for the couple to pay homage to chess in some way as her now-husband, Logan Brain, is a professional chess player who also teaches chess to kids.

“We set up chess boards for people to play outside and, instead of table numbers, we assigned books for each table,” said Sandford, a professional dancer and choreographer. “We organized it so that all of Logan’s guests had a chess tactic book while all of my guests had a fantasy sci-fi book.”

Chess boards set up outside with books as table assignments. A book on a stand. No faces detected.

Sandford said this was an easy way for the couple to share their passions with their guests. It also helped her sketch out the look and feel of the event.

“I have no sense of decoration and, the only way I know how to do things is to share things that I like,” she said.

During the cocktail hour, Sandford saw some of their guests playing a game.

“No one who came to our wedding was that surprised to see chess boards set up,” she said with a laugh. “Everyone who has ever met Logan would be like ‘yeah, that checks out.’”

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    14. Take heart from the "one-third rule." Research says if you can get one-third of a school's parents involved, you can begin to make significant improve-ment in student achievement. 15. Be aware that teachers are more reluctant to contact par-ents than vice versa.

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    Work Together Assignments Sometimes sending home assignments that are both for the kids and the parents is a great idea. The parents can be involved in knowing what the kids are learning whilst helping them learn. This offers a different perspective from a teacher's and is important for the kids. 7. Parent Progress Reports

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  22. Involving Parents, Families in Early Learning

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  28. Couples are incorporating interests and hobbies into the wedding

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  29. Volkswagen in talks over future of Xinjiang site as pressure mounts

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